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LIFE, LETTERS, AND ADDRESSES 



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Aaron Friedenwald, m.d. 




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LIFE, LETTERS, AND 
ADDRESSES 



OF 



Aaron Friedenwald, m.d. 



BY HIS SON 

HARRY FRIEDENWALD, M.D. 



PRINTED FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION 



T%t £ort> QSafttmove tyvtee 



BALTIMORE, MD. 

U. S. A. 

1906 






A 



LIBRARY of CONGRESS 
Two Copies Received 

OCT 20 1906 

Copyright Entry 

CUSS CL XXc, No. 
/wT£ fS f 

COPY B. J 



COPYRIGHT, 1906, BY 

HARRY FRIEDENWALD 



TO HER 

WHO FOR THIRTY-NINE YEARS 

HALVED HIS SORROWS 

AND DOUBLED HIS JOYS 



CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Introduction 11 

PAET I. 

LIFE AND LETTERS. 

Chapter I. Family Antecedents 15 

II. Early Life (1836-1860) 22 

III. Student Days in Berlin (1860-1861) 33 

IV. Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna (1861- 

1862) 59 

V. Practice and Personality 84 

VI. "Work in Medical and Communal Organizations 108 

VII. Letters (1887-1892) 125 

VIII. Trip to Europe (1895) 157 

IX. Oriental Trip (1898) 165 

X. Letters (1899-1901) 203 

XI. Last Days (1902) 212 

PAET II. 

ADDRESSES. 

I. Medical Addresses. 

Introductory Address Delivered before the Class of the College 
of Physicians and Surgeons of Baltimore City, September 
14, 1881 221 

Address at the Opening of the New City Hospital, January 

1, 1890 233 

Address Delivered at the Celebration of the Seventieth Birthday 
of Professor Virchow, held in the Johns Hopkins University, 
October 13, 1891 239 

Memoir of Dr. George H. Rohe, Read at the Spring Meeting of 

the Maryland Public Health Association, 1901 242 

II. After Dinner Speeches. 

Response to the Toast, " Our Candidates for Graduation, May 
They All Pass a Successful Examination," at a Banquet 
given by the Faculty of the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, January 1, 1880 247 

Response to the Toast of " The Faculty," at the Banquet of the 
Alumni of the College of Physicians and Surgeons, March 
1, 1882 251 



Aaeon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 



PAGE 

Response to a Toast at the Annual Banquet of the Alumni 

of the College of Physicians and Surgeons, March 3, 1884 . . 256 

Address Delivered at the Annual Banquet of the Alumni Asso- 
ciation of the College of Physicians and Surgeons, March 
12, 1885 259 

Response to the Toast "The Final Examination; Examine me 
on the Particulars of my Knowledge," at the Annual 
Banquet of the Alumni of the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, March 15, 1887 263 

Response to the Toast of " The Specialist," at the Annual 
Banquet of the Alumni of the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, March 15, 1888 268 

Response to the Toast of " The Cap and Gown," at the Annual 
Banquet of the Alumni of the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, 1891 272 

Response to a Toast at the Annual Banquet of the Alumni of 

the College of Physicians and Surgeons, April 19, 1893 276 

Response to the Toast of " The College," at the Annual Banquet 
of the Alumni of the College of Physicians and Surgeons, 
April 15, 1897 280 

Response to the Toast of " Music," at a Banquet of the Baltimore 

Medical Association, about 1873 283 

Response to the Toast of " The Babies," at the Annual Banquet 
of the Baltimore Medical and Surgical Society, January 
28, 1886 285 

Response to the Toast, " Jollity, the King of Medicines," at the 

Annual Meeting of the Liberal Club, January 1, 1889 289 

Response to the Toast of " Matrimony " 294 

III. Jewish Addresses. 

Address on the Occasion of the Dedication of a Newly-Acquired 
Plot of Ground, Delivered at the Simchath Torah Festival 
of the Hebrew Hospital and Asylum Association of Balti- 
more City, October 16, 1881 296 

Address Delivered at the Simchath Torah Festival of the 

Hebrew Hospital and Asylum Association, 1890 300 

Address at the Purim Banquet held by the Ladies' Orphans' Aid 

Society, February 27, 1885 307 

" Charity," an Address Delivered at the Annual Banquet of the 

Hebrew Benevolent Society, December 1, 1892 310 

Address Delivered at the Annual Meeting of the Baltimore 
Branch of the Alliance Israelite Vniverselle, March, 19, 
1893 315 

" A Trip to Palestine," an Address read before the Young 

Men's Hebrew Association of New York, February 25, 1899. 318 



Contents. 



PAGE 

" Glimpses in Palestine " 338 

" Lovers of Zion," an Address Delivered before the Mickve 

Israel Association of Philadelphia, December 23, 1894.... 342 

Appendix. 

List of Published and Unpublished Writings 353 

LIST OF ILLUSTKATIONS. 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken November 4, 

1901 Frontispiece 

FACING 
PAGE 

Jonas Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken about 1865 18 

Merle Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken about 1865 20^ 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Daguerreotype taken in April, 1860. . . . 28 

Facsimile of a Letter of Professor Nathan R. Smith 30 " 

Aaron Friedenwald (from a Photograph taken in Berlin about 

1860) and Bertha Bamberger (from a Photograph taken in 

1862) 32 

Moses Friedenwald, from a Daguerreotype taken about 1860 40 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken in 1863 84" 

Home (310 N. Eutaw Street), from a Photograph taken in 1903... 88 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken about 1877 92 

Office, from a Photograph taken shortly after Dr. Friedenwald's 

Death, 1902 104 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken April 16, 1891 154 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken March 17, 1898 164 

Dr. and Mrs. Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken October, 

1899 202 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken April, 1902 212 

Mrs. Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken in 1903 214 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken in April, 1902 218 

Faculty of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Baltimore, 

from a Photograph taken about 1884 260 

Aaron Friedenwald, from a Photograph taken April 16, 1891 272 

Facsimile of a Specimen of My Father's Handwriting 288 

Note. — My father was very near-sighted; the cast in his eyes, seen 
in some of the photographs, was merely apparent, and was due to the 
glasses he wore. 



"There are three crowns: the crown of Torah, the crown of 
pnesthood, and the crown of kingdom; but the crown of a good 
name excels them all." 

—Ethics of the Fathers. 



INTRODUCTION. 

My father's life was not a long one. It did not attain the number 
of years which, according to the Psalmist, constitute a complete life. 
Nevertheless it was full and well-rounded. Its relations with that of 
the general community were many and intimate. So numerous and 
broad were my father's interests, that a large number learned 
to know him as a physician, as a teacher, as a public-spirited 
citizen, as a loyal son of Israel, as a man. Uniting his attach- 
ments and allegiances, he fulfilled the many and varied obliga- 
tions of a busy practitioner and teacher of medicine without neg- 
lecting his duties to his family, to the community, and to his people ; 
and in rendering full justice to all the demands thus made upon 
him, he still found time to satisfy the calls of friendship, of social 
intercourse, of charity, and of religion. His life was full and com- 
plete because he used the abilities with which he was endowed to 
the fullest extent and to the highest and best purpose ; undertaking 
much, and finishing what he had undertaken ; living in conformity 
with the highest principles, and ever guided by the most noble and 
exalted ideals. 

Added interest is given to a life like my father's by the fact 
that whatever he accomplished, his position in the community 
and in the profession, was due to none but himself. The 
influences which surrounded him in his youth were not such as to 
lead the young man to seek the higher pursuits of a professional life. 
He had many a struggle, but the difficulties surmounted were the 
crucible in which a strong character was formed, a character in 
which there were developed and refined the noblest qualities of mind 
and heart and soul. 

Although his life was not filled with interesting events, much of 
it being spent in the quiet industry and labor which shun the public 



12 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

gaze, it is interesting to study step by step the development of such 
a life from its beginnings to the unfolding of its full manhood, to 
trace the influence of environment and education, to learn the 
views of life which guided it, the fundamental principles 
which inspired it. The material which I possess is not as complete 
as I should wish it to be. My personal recollections cover only the 
latter half of my father's life. Some of bis letters which have been 
preserved reach farther back, but for the remainder I must rely 
upon what he related of his early life, and especially upon the mem- 
ories of her who for thirty-nine years was his faithful helpmate. 
I have all the letters which I received from my father, and 
by good fortune those which he wrote to friends and relatives when 
studying in Europe as a young man, as well as the diaries he kept 
during that period, have also been preserved. From the letters, 
numbering many hundreds, I have made selections which are of in- 
terest as bearing upon his vocation, his views, his character, or which 
possess such general interest as warrants their publication in this 
volume. From a large number of addresses of various kinds, I have 
chosen a number for publication. I have also included a few after- 
dinner speeches. All purely medical writings have been excluded as 
unsuited to the purpose of this volume. The selections have been 
made so as to embrace his varied interests, medical, communal, 
Jewish; to give an idea of his style, and to illustrate his wit and 
humor. In the work of selection I have been greatly aided by Mr. 
David S. Blondheim, to whom I desire to express my obligations. 

As far as possible, I have used the letters that are in my posses- 
sion to weave the story of my father's life, in the hope that he who 
reads them may feel as did the poet : 

" So word by word, and line by line 
The dead man touched me from the past, 
And all at once it seemed at last 
His living soul was flashed on mine." 



Inteoduction. 13 

The letters, together with the addresses, furnish the best material 
to picture' the man as he really was, keen of intellect, sound in judg- 
ment, broad in his interests, filled with admiration for the beautiful 
in nature, in art, and in human life, fearless and independent, affec- 
tionate and tender, " fearing God and keeping his commandments," 

H.F. 



LIFE AND LETTERS 



CHAPTER I. 

Family Antecedents. 

Hesse-Darmstadt is a fertile country of hills and valleys, inter- 
spersed with rich pasture lands. It possesses many hamlets and 
a few cities, Darmstadt being the largest town in the South and 
Giessen the largest in the North. Jews have been settled in this 
land for many centuries. The earliest mention of their presence 
is toward the end of the thirteenth century, when " individual 
Jewish families were to be found in many localities;" and from 
this time on there is frequent reference to them, chiefly in the form 
of repressive measures. Thus, in 1538, Prince Philip the Magnani- 
mous, although he seems to have been at times somewhat kindly 
disposed toward the Jews, promulgated a decree that they should 
not resist efforts at their conversion, that they should build no new 
synagogues, and that their commerce should be restricted. 

His successors continued this policy of persecution, and frequent 
threats of expulsion served only to vary the monotony of grinding 
taxation. Thus the Jews had to pay " protection-money ; a tax for 
admission; horse, fair, silver, wax, and quill taxes," as well as 
dons gratuits at the accession of a new sovereign. 

At the request of the Jews, a decree relating to dress was pro- 
mulgated in 1773, with a view to restraining luxury; and in 1785 
Jews were ordered to use the German language in book-keeping 
and commercial correspondence. With the period of enlightenment 
a more generous spirit swept over Hesse. Under Ludwig X. (1790- 
1830) the " Leibzoll" was abolished, the Jews were permitted 
to acquire real estate, and the way was paved for emancipation. 
When Hesse was elevated to the rank of a grand duchy, after the 



16 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

wars of liberation, the constitution of December 17, 1820, which 
placed all the divisions of Hesse on an equal basis, granted the 
Jews civil liberty. "A special edict (1823) regulated Jewish edu- 
cation, and another edict (1830) organized the congregations." 
Many years elapsed before all restrictions were removed. 1 

The majority of the Jews in Hesse were small traders, though 
there were also farmers among them. Most of them were poor, 
many were very poor; for conditions such as have been described 
did not lead to affluence. 

My father's ancestors had lived in this country for many genera- 
tions. Near Giessen, 2 in the little town of Altenbuseck, lying in the 
valley of the Buseck, three and three-quarters miles from Giessen, 
Jonas Friedenwald was born on November 9, 1802. His father, 
" Chayim, the son of Isaac," assumed the name of Friedenwald, 
probably from the town of Friedewald. 3 Jonas Friedenwald's 
mother, whose given name was Biele, died in 1809, when he was a 
boy of seven. On April 16, 1794, Merle Bar was born in Boben- 
hausen, situated about four and one-half miles northwest of Alten- 
buseck. She married a relative of Jonas Friedenwald, named 
Moses Stern, and bore him a son, soon after whose birth her hus- 
band died. The widow married again, her second husband being 
Jonas Friedenwald, who was then some twenty } r ears old, being 
seven years younger than his wife. The couple owned a little farm, 
part of which had been acquired by Jonas, and were hard-working 
and industrious, raising by their unaided efforts sufficient produce 
to support the family, including the aged father. They would go 

1 This account follows the " Jewish Encyclopedia," Vol. VI, Art. 
" Hesse," from which the quotations are derived. 

2 The memory of Giessen lingered long in family tradition. A wind- 
fall was always greeted by the words: " Zu Giessen kann man's 
brauchen." 

8 A small place in Hesse-Nassau, some fifty-five miles to the north- 
east of Giessen, which gave its name to the treaty of Friedewald, 
signed in 1551 between France and the League of Smalkalden. 



Family Antecedents. 17 

into the field at daybreak, finishing their farm-work before break- 
fast, after which the husband would carry on his business as a small 
trader. He was strong, energetic, able, and ambitious ; his wife was 
prudent and endowed with excellent common-sense. Many years 
later, long after she had passed away, her husband spoke of her 
with admiration and love, saying that his marriage was the best 
thing that had ever happened to him, for his wife had always given 
him the best of aid and counsel. " Indeed," he added, " the only 
time I made a great mistake was when I declined to follow her ad- 
vice." 

An increasing family and an early recognition of the poor pros- 
pects which life in Altenbuseck offered led the couple to resolve to 
seek another home by emigrating to America. They were the first 
Jews from that neighborhood to take this venturesome step. All 
their effects were sold, and the sum realized was sufficiently large 
to cause Jonas Priedenwald to hesitate; — after all, might he not, 
perhaps, begin some more successful enterprise with this money? 
This was one of the times when the courage and judgment of his 
wife came to his aid. Now that matters had gone thus far, she in- 
sisted upon leaving, and her voice prevailed. They set out in Septem- 
ber, 1831, upon a sailing vessel, the Louise of Bremen, with the aged 
father, Chayim Priedenwald, 4 Merle's son, Bernard Stern (1820- 
1873), and three other children, Betzy (1825-1894), Joseph 
(1827- ), and Isaac Friedenwald (1831-1904), the last an infant 
some two months old, on the weary and hazardous voyage to Balti- 
more. The passage, which lasted four months, was attended with 
great hardships. Kosher meat had been smoked and packed for the 
long trip, but unfortunately the captain of the vessel demanded that 
it be placed in his charge; and, though it was explained by my grand- 

4 Who survived the arrival in America sixteen years, during which 
period he occasionally acted as cantor at the services of the Baltimore 
Hebrew Congregation. He died in 1848, at the age of eighty-six. 



18 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

father that if this were done the Jewish law would forbid the use of 
the meat, the order was obeyed. The entire family did not taste a 
morsel of meat during all those months. Their sufferings were in- 
creased by the fact that the wife and mother became very sea-sick as 
soon as the ship started, and did not recover until the stormy trip was 
over. In addition they had to bear the taunts and jeers of their preju- 
diced fellow-passengers, who charged them with being responsible 
for the storms encountered. The captain, however, respecting the 
father's faithful observance of his religious duties under a shower 
of ridicule, allowed the family to use his own cabin for their devo- 
tions. The ship arrived on Thursday, January 15, 1832, at the mouth 
of the Patapsco, after meeting with great difficulty in making its 
way through the ice which obstructed the bay from Annapolis north- 
ward. As the river was frozen over, the Louise did not reach Balti- 
more until Friday evening, just before sunset. To avoid seeking 
lodgings on the Sabbath, Jonas Friedenwald left the ship on Thurs- 
day night. He walked over the ice to the city, in which he found 
shelter, renting from a coreligionist two small rooms in an upper 
story, and awaited the coming of his family. The immigrants had 
neither relatives nor friends to greet them; 5 they were penniless, 
for all their slender stock of money had been expended on the 
voyage over. On landing, the father found on the wharf a " fippenny 
bit" (a coin worth about six cents), and this, the only money he 
had, was the small beginning of what eventually became a modest 
fortune. His sturdy self-respect led him to decline aid which was 
proffered him, though he was so hard pressed that he had no money 
to buy bread. A kind-hearted baker gave him a loaf on credit, 
and as long as that baker remained in business he counted among 
his best customers the family of the man he had befriended. On 
the day after the immigrants arrived it was very cold in the bare 

5 There were at that time only three or four German Jewish families 
in Baltimore. 





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JONAS FRIEDENWALD 

About 1865 






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Family Antecedents. 19 

lodgings, and my great-grandfather and Bernard Stern went out 
into the woods near Patterson Park to get wood to make a fire. 
Joseph Friedenwald, a little boy, shivering with cold, said to his 
mother : " Waren wir rmr in unserem warmen Stitbchen zu Hause 
geblieben!" The poor woman, who had braved and suffered so 
much, broke down and cried bitterly. 

But better times soon dawned. In a few days Jonas Frieden- 
wald, who had decided mechanical ability, started out as an um- 
brella mender, an occupation which he had learned shortly before 
leaving Europe, with a view to supporting himself in America. 
This work from the first yielded him an income sufficient to main- 
tain his family, to lay aside enough to begin a general junk-business, 
in which the entire household aided him, and, not long after, to 
open near-by a grocery store, of which his wife took charge. Suc- 
cess crowned their efforts, and a ledger of the years 1840 and 1841, 
which is in the hands of the writer, shows numerous accounts run- 
ning into several hundreds of dollars. This progress was aided 
by the father's early acquisition of the English language, which 
he learned to use with ease, partly by practice, especially in the 
deliberations of Warren Lodge, A. P. and A. M., of which he soon 
became a member, 8 and partly by reading the Baltimore Sun, to 
which he remained a subscriber for sixty years. He later entered 
the hardware business, in company with his son-in-law, and by the 
year 1854 was in a position to retire upon a competence sufficient 
to maintain his family in comfort, and to enable him to give freely 
to all the needy who applied to him, as well as to various societies 
and institutions. He was one of the founders of the Hebrew As- 
sistance Society, later called the Hebrew Benevolent Society. He 
was chosen its second treasurer, and continued to act as such for 
many years. When the demands upon the Benevolent Society on 

6 He was for some years before his death the oldest Mason in Balti- 
more. 



20 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

behalf of the sick and the aged exceeded its resources, it was at his 
instance that the meeting which resulted in the organization of the 
Hebrew Hospital and Asylum Association was held. When the 
need for an orphan asylum for Jewish children became apparent, he 
suggested the calling of a meeting at which the Hebrew Orphan Asy- 
lum was founded. He reestablished the Hebrew Free Burial So- 
ciety, and was elected its president, and various members of his 
family united in donating the ground in which the society makes 
interments. For many years he distributed to the poor Mazzoth for 
Passover, and by a liberal bequest which he made this charity is 
still continued.' He devoted himself almost entirely to communal 
and religious affairs, for he had a deep love for his faith and for 
his people. His wise counsel aided many a Jewish newcomer to 
establish himself. His benevolence, however, knew no bounds of 
race or creed; his will, for example, contained, among other be- 
quests, liberal legacies to the Baltimore Association for the Im- 
provement of the Condition of the Poor, to the German Orphan 
Asylum, and to the German Aged People's Home. His kindness to 
the unfortunate, charity to the poor, and hospitality to the stranger 
became proverbial. 

In religion his attitude was uncompromisingly conservative. In 
protest against innovations which he considered improper and even 
impious he withdrew in 1871 from the Baltimore Hebrew Congre- 
gation, and formed, together with a few associates, the Chizuk 
Emoonah Congregation, which built a synagogue in Lloyd street. 
In connection with this synagogue he aided in establishing and 
maintaining a Beth lia-Midrash, together with a Rabbinical library. 

His devotion to his religion appears in the following extract 

7 This bequest was transferred, after the death of Aaron Friedenwald, 
to the Hebrew Benevolent Society of Baltimore, the directors of which 
agreed to apply the proceeds in perpetuity in accordance with the 
wishes of the testator. 





MERLE FRIEDENWALD 

About 1865 






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Family Antecedents. 21 

from a letter which my father wrote to me under date of January 
1, 1888. 

"I saw grandfather this morning and he inquired after you. He 
had a cold, he told me, and regretted very much that he could not 
go to synagogue early in the morning, particularly as for the first 
time they failed to get minyan.* Just think of it, at his age, on a 
sleety winter morning, upbraiding himself for having neglected 
what he considered to be a duty! It is refreshing to see a man 
clinging to duty throughout a long life, and praying for strength 
to continue to do so." 

His ninetieth birthday was celebrated in the synagogue by an 
imposing service, at which a number of prominent rabbis delivered 
addresses fitly commemorating his services to his people and to 
his faith. He died on September 2, 1893, having nearly reached 
his ninety-first birthday. 

His wife had died long years before, on July 9, 1871. Her death 
was a great blow to her husband, then a man of seventy, who made 
a two years' voyage to Europe to recover from its depressing effects. 
On the voyage out the vessel on which he sailed was wrecked, and 
he was the last passenger to leave the ship, and the only one injured. 
Before my grandmother died, she suffered many years of painful 
illness, which nevertheless did not change the uniform kindli- 
ness of her disposition. She was noted for her skilful use of the pithy 
aphorisms in which Jewish wit is so prolific. I can truly say, in the 
words of Solomon, that she was a " virtuous woman, whose price 
was far above rubies. The heart of her husband trusted in her, and 
she did him good and not evil all the days of her life. She opened 
her mouth with wisdom, and the law of kindness was on her tongue." 

8 The quorum necessary for public worship. 



CHAPTER II. 
Early Life (1830-1860). 

After Jonas Friedenwald's arrival in America two sons were 
born to him. The first of these, Moses, was born in 1834; the 
second, born on December 20, 1836, almost five years after the 
landing of the immigrants, was Aaron Friedenwald, the subject of 
the present biography. His schooling began early, and he was able 
to write when he was eight years old. He remarks in a letter dated 
December 31, 1887 : " I remember well when I first began to write. 
It was in 1844, and it does not seem so very long ago." He attended 
the school maintained by the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation. 
Among his first teachers was an Irishman named Ross, a dominie 
of the old school, stern and severe, but a thorough and efficient in- 
structor, for whom he always cherished profound respect. In later 
years he would repeat a jingling list of the counties of Maryland, 
such as old-fashioned pedagogues delighted in, with the remark that 
he had learnt it from Ross. His early religious training was re- 
ceived at the congregational school. His instructors were Mr. 
Weil, Mr. Dannenberg, Mr. Sachs, and, later on, Reverend Dr. 
Henry Hochheimer, who, soon after his arrival in this country, pre- 
pared my father for the Bar-Mizwah ceremony, and introduced him 
to the study of Rashi's Biblical commentary. He early acquired for 
the study of Hebrew a love which he retained throughout his life. 
He was an apt scholar, and in later years looked back to his school 
days as pleasant memories. His mother described him as very studi- 
ous. Although he was always willing to help in any way he could, 
she said, whenever he had a moment's leisure in the winter-time he 



Eablt Life. 23 

would find a snug corner near the stove and read some interesting 
book. He received scant encouragement at home, however, and 
was looked upon as a mere dreamer. His brother Moses was the 
only member of the family who could understand him and sympa- 
thize with him. 

An important influence upon the formation of his character was 
that exerted by the late Eeverend Abraham Eice, the first Eabbi 
of the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation and an intimate friend of 
the family. Eice was a very pious man, whose congenial nature 
and religious fervor attracted the thoughtful boy, and it is to his 
influence rather than to any other that I should ascribe the con- 
sistent religious views which marked the whole course of my father's 
life. His loving veneration for Eice appeared in his frequent refer- 
ences to him and in his unvarying custom of having the prayer for 
the dead recited in his memory on the Day of Atonement. He 
mentioned on several occasions his intention of publishing a biog- 
raphy of the rabbi, together with a selection from his sermons, 
some of which my father transcribed; this intention, however, was 
never carried out. 

His school days were soon over, and the earnest work of life be- 
gan for him when he was about fifteen years old. His brothers, 
who were engaged in the clothing business, employed him as a 
book-keeper. He continued at this work till his twenty-first birth- 
day, finding the position decidedly uncongenial. Many years elapsed 
before he completely outlived the bitterness of this period. In a 
letter written in his later life (December 22, 1887) to his favorite 
brother Moses he says, " We are afforded . . . the consolation 
that now we can look up higher than to those who ruled over us 
then, and that many heartaches, disappointments, and humiliations 
to which we were subjected then have also been interred." 

But this period was not entirely spent in the drudgery of office 



24 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

work. The ambitious clerk was preparing himself for some broader 
sphere of activity. His evenings were devoted in great part to 
study and general reading. He took lessons from Mr. Jonas Gold- 
smith in French, making considerable progress in that language; 
and he learned to know English literature well, being particularly 
interested in fiction and in history. The sciences, especially physics, 
chemistry, and mathematics, were also diligently studied, and he 
gained so thorough a knowledge of them that in later years his 
children never brought him a question in science or a problem in 
algebra or geometry which he could not help them to unravel. 

At this time he benefited by attending the debates of a literary 
society which met at the northeast corner of Calvert and Centre 
streets. Later, about 1855, he was one of the founders of a similar 
society, called the Hebrew Young Men's Literary Association, be- 
coming one of the most active members of this body. In February, 
1856, he was elected recording secretary, and several years later was 
chosen president. The debates held by this society, which was com- 
posed of a number of young men from eighteen to twenty years of 
age, were a source of entertainment and instruction. A number of 
speeches which my father wrote to deliver in these debates are still 
in existence, and show that he had at that time a good command of 
forceful English. For example, he opens an essay on " Patriotism," 
written about 1857, in the following words : 

" Of all the virtues which are calculated to elevate a person in the 
estimation of his countrymen, which procure for him the respect of 
the world and hand down his name to be revered by posterity, there 
is none to be compared to Patriotism. . . . 

" Would the justice of an Aristides, the piety of a Washington, 
the wisdom of a Franklin or a Jefferson, the valor of a Jackson have 
occupied such a great [place] in the minds of their countrymen or 
on the pages of history had not their patriotic deeds caused uni- 



Early Life. 25 

versal admiration and enthusiasm? . . . He who is imbued 
with that noble feeling is fearless of danger, regardless of sacrifice, 
when his services are required either to check the baneful influence 
of party spirit, and to quell the dangerous agitations that ambitious 
demagogues may occasion at home, to defend the sanctity of his 
country from the invasion of a foreign foe, or to break the fetters 
of an enslaved people." 

His views upon public speaking are expressed in one of these es- 
says as follows: "When has there been such an extraordinary 
striving for the acquisition of eloquence as there is in the present 
time? Almost every school boy, dazzled by the brilliance of the 
position occupied by eloquent men, is led to the erroneous belief 
that the culture ... of his perhaps overvalued abilities will 
make him a second Cicero, or flatters himself destined to fill the 
position left vacant by Clay, Calhoun, and Webster. ... I 
grant that study, perseverance, and application may contribute to 
the gracefulness of position, to the development of the voice, to the 
beauty of language, to the impressiveness of speech, and to the per- 
suasiveness of argument. . . . Was it art that enabled the 
fathers of the Eevolution to kindle enthusiasm within the hearts 
of the people, that brought about such glorious results? Was it 
. . . studied rhetoric that fired the people to action, that caused 
them to forget the dangers of war and fly to arms to do the bidding 
of their country ? ... It was their patriotism, which was dis- 
played in every word they uttered. It was their love for the cause 
of humanity, which flashed from their countenances. It was their 
devotedness to their country, which characterized their . . . 
illustrious careers. It was their sincerity, which was as palpable 
then as it was afterwards in their struggles upon the fields of 
battle. . . . 

" While the heart bled, while humanity groaned under the iron 
heel of oppression, when it was seen that even in exile there was 



26 Aaeon Friedenwald, M. D. 

no refuge from the cruelties of the tyrant, then every appeal in be- 
half of freedom became eloquent, for it was the effusion of the 
soul. . . . 

" Let a man be as perfect in oratory as art can make him, if 
there is the least blemish upon his character, if there is anything 
that can cause it to be suspected that he is more a preacher than a 
practicer of morality, all the resources that he can bring to bear 
will be fruitless and unavailing. . . ." 

It was the custom of this society to have a written report of each 
meeting submitted by a member selected to act as critic. A volume 
of such reports, extending from November 12, 1856, to February 
21, 1858, is in my possession. My father's name occurs frequently 
as a participant in the discussions, and the book contains a number 
of reports written and signed by him in a characteristic hand, al- 
most identical with that of his latest years. From this book the 
following excerpts are taken. As critic of the meeting of December 
21, 1856, at which the subject, " Do Circumstances ever Justify 
Crime?" was discussed, he takes exception to 

"... One argument, however, which appears to me to be very er- 
roneous. [The debater] said that the crime of perjury would be 
justifiable should its commission be the means of saving an inno- 
cent person from an ignominious death. If we examine upon what 
principle the taking of oath was instituted, the fallacy of the argu- 
ment will at once appear. In the taking of evidence in cases of 
law, why will not the plain statement suffice? What importance 
is added to it by an oath? It is justly supposed that, when a man 
is conscious of certain punishment, it will act as a great means to 
prevent him from committing crime. And, as the commandment 
says : ' Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord in vain, for the 
Lord will not hold him guiltless who taketh his name in vain,' who 
then can expect to be held guiltless if he calls the name of the 
Lord to witness the utterance of a falsehood?" 



Early Life. 27 

At the meeting held on November 29, 1857, he recited a poem. 
The critic of the meeting remarks : " His solemn tone of voice was 
well suited to the character of the piece he had chosen, and only at 
the end of some sentences degenerated into a singing tone." 

As critic of the meeting of December 27, 1857, he mentions the 
late Dr. A. B. Arnold, then a physician of ten years' practice, whom 
he describes elsewhere as the " guardian of our society." He speaks 
thus of Arnold, who had taken part in the debate : " The doctor's 
remarks were delivered in his usual agreeable and impressive style. 
The manner in which he constantly scans the arguments of his op- 
ponents without losing sight of those he intends to establish is one 
peculiarly his own." 

His humor sometimes appeared in these criticisms. He thus flays 
Mr. N., who was to have given a historical reading : " He caused the 
audience a double disappointment. First, the piece of poetry which 
he read was entirely devoid of historical interest; and, secondly, his 
reading was as bad as his selection." 

He derived great advantage from several years of activity in this 
society. In after years, when he was noted as an orator from whose 
lips an address, a lecture, or an after-dinner speech flowed with 
equal grace, and as a speaker who was never at a loss for the fitting 
word, he assured the writer that as a young man public speaking 
had been most painful and embarrassing to him, and that only long 
practice had overcome this difficulty. Usually, though not always, 
he wrote out what he intended to say, and after one or two readings 
of his manuscript he would be prepared to deliver an address com- 
bining the order and finish of a set speech with the freedom and 
spontaneity of impromptu discourse. 

On April 22, 1858, he was received into Masonry, and on June 24 
of the same year he became a Master Mason in Amicable Lodge, 
No. 25, A. P. and A. M. Though not active as a Mason, he re- 
mained a member of this lodge until his death, forty-five years 
later. 



28 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

When my father reached his majority, he informed his parents 
that he was resolved to give up business and to study medicine, and 
accordingly he entered on March 6, 1858 the office of Professor 
Nathan E. Smith, known among the medical profession as the 
" Emperor," and one of the most prominent surgeons of his day. He 
also took out cards for the courses at the University of Maryland. 
This step marked the turning point of his life. He had long looked 
forward to intellectual work, and was obliged to overcome great 
difficulties in the shape of prejudices and other obstacles which 
blocked his path. His studies meant a new life to him, a life which 
released him from an occupation thoroughly distasteful, and opened 
the way to activities which he had long looked forward to and never 
ceased to love. 

One day, soon after he entered Professor Smith's office as a pupil, 
he walked into the university infirmary and found a note, unsigned, 
making an insulting reference to his religion. He immediately 
wrote underneath the scrawl : " The man who wrote the above lines 
is as great a coward as he is a scoundrel, or he would have signed 
his name" ; and then added his own, " A. Friedenwald." In a 
short time he was confronted by a number of students, one of whom 
demanded menacingly to know if he had written those words. He 
emphatically affirmed that he had, and stood so plainly ready to 
answer for what he had done that his opponents left the room one by 
one, not daring to molest him. His election to the " Rush Club," 
a secret university organization, named after the famous Dr. Ben- 
jamin Push of Philadelphia, membership in which was an indica- 
tion of scholarship and character, soon followed. Dr. N. G. Keirle, 
who was at that time an advanced student, and remembers the in- 
cident well, recently told me of an epilogue to this story. Many 
years later he met my father looking for Dr. 0., the author of the 
unsigned note, in order to assure him that he bore him no ill-will. 
Dr. Keirle, who told my father that Dr. 0., who had for many years 






AARON FRIEDENWALD 
April, i860 






-, r reat 
id 0] 



ajAwnaaaim i/iofiaa 






Eaely Life. 29 

been a clerk in a drug-store, had recently died, was deeply touched 
at the sorrow which this information caused him. 

As the affair of the anonymous note would show, my father was 
a man of courage and sturdiness. He was fully able to take care of 
himself. One day, when a very small boy, he came home crying 
that another boy had given him a whipping; whereupon his father 
gave him another, with the admonition to defend himself better in 
the future. He profited by the lesson. Swimming, driving, and 
fishing were the favorite sports of his younger days, though he and 
his brothers were also fond of wrestling. He became expert in all 
of these forms of exercise, and developed an active and muscular 
physique. As a little boy he was in the habit of swimming in the 
harbor, close to his home at the foot of Bond street; and once nar- 
rowly escaped death, having been caught under the rafters of the 
wharf. On another occasion he and his brother Moses, at the risk 
of their lives, saved a boy from drowning. 

His courage was seen on more than one occasion. In his younger 
days there was a body of " Know-nothing " rowdies who were in the 
habit of disturbing balls, picnics, and other gatherings, and often 
broke them up. My father and his friends twice gave these worthies 
an unpleasant reception. On one of these occasions the roughs at- 
tempted to disturb a ball given at the " New Assembly Booms." 
They entered, and were about to resort to their usual tactics when 
the gentlemen present, who were prepared for them, locked the 
doors, and soon laid every one of the unbidden guests flat on the 
floor. Then the doors were opened, and each one of the invaders 
was carried from the hall by two bearers, one at his head and one 
at his heels, and unceremoniously tumbled out into the street. This 
was the last time my father and his friends were ever molested by 
these gentry. During the time that he was a student of medicine 
he stopped one evening at the clothing store kept by his brothers. 
A fellow suddenly rushed in, snatched an armful of clothes, and 



30 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

dashed away at full speed. My father immediately started after 
him; presently the thief dropped the goods, but the pursuer never 
slackened his pace. The rowdy ran over to the opposite side of the 
street, drew a revolver, and shouted : " If anybody comes near me, 
I'll shoot," Without a second's hesitation, my father rushed at him, 
seized him by the throat, threw him down, snatched the revolver out 
of his grasp, and, holding it at his head, kept him prisoner until a 
policeman arrived to conduct the thief to the station-house. On 
another occasion my father was seated in the rear of the second of 
three carriages in which a picnic party was riding. The inexperi- 
enced driver of the first carriage carelessly allowed his horse to 
get too near the edge of a steep embankment. The vehicle was on 
the point of toppling over, .when my father, seeing the danger, 
cleared the front seat, leaped over the dash-board, ran up, and, at 
the risk of his life, stopped the horse. It was all done in the twink- 
ling of an eye. 

The incident just mentioned occurred during my father's student 
days at the University of Maryland. This period combined hard 
study with the pleasures of friendly intercourse with congenial 
fellow-students and teachers, and he often alluded to it in later life. 
His most intimate friend among the students was Alexander Bear, 
of Virginia, who, after graduation, enlisted in the Confederate 
Army, and later settled in Nebraska. Both were frequent visitors at 
the home of Dr. A. B. Arnold. It was Mr. Bear who introduced my 
father, at a picnic in 1859, to Miss Bertha Bamberger. This ac- 
quaintance finally led to their betrothal and marriage. 

Among my father's teachers at the University of Maryland there 
were several who should be specially mentioned. Foremost among 
these was Professor Smith. For two years my father remained in 
his office, and the relations between them became very close. Smith 
won his unbounded admiration and esteem, both as a surgeon 
and as a man, and that this esteem was returned is shown by 



Early Life. 31 

the following certificate, given my father on the eve of his depar- 
ture for Europe. 

University oe Maryland, April 22, 1860. 
It gives me great pleasure to bear unsolicited testimony to the 
superior merits and qualifications of my young friend and recent 
pupil, Dr. Aaron Friedenwald. 

Dr. Friedenwald is a recent graduate of the University of Mary- 
land, and has been a private pupil of my office during two years. 
He has seen much of my practice and has aided me in many sur- 
gical operations. He has applied himself with distinguished in- 
dustry and intelligence and in all respects he has commanded my 
highest respect and confidence. 

I there [fore] commend him, without reserve, to the kind offices 
of all with whom my name may have influence. 

Nathan E. Smith, M. D., 
Prof, of Surgery, University of Md. 

There sprang up between master and pupil a firm friendship, 
which ended only with the death of the former in 1877. 

Professor Charles Frick, the able, original, and enthusiastic in- 
structor in materia medica and therapeutics, was another favorite 
teacher. His death in March, 1860, shortly after the commencement, 
was a great shock to my father, who cherished among his most 
valued papers the introductory address delivered by Frick at the 
beginning of the session of 1858-1859. Professor Joseph Eoby, 
one of the best anatomists this country ever had, also made a deep 
impression upon him. In later life my father often spoke of him 
as a most remarkable man. The genial Professor G. W. Miltenber- 
ger, who outlived his pupil, occupied the chair of obstetrics. He 
always remained a fast friend of my father's. The other instructors 
were Samuel Chew, professor of the principles and practice of 
medicine, William E. A. Aikin, professor of chemistry and 
pharmacy, and Berwick B. Smith, demonstrator of anatomy. 



32 Aakon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

Diligent study marked the future physician's work at the Uni- 
versity of Maryland, and a successful conclusion crowned the activ- 
ity of two well-spent years on February 28, 1860, under which date 
Dr. Miltenberger, as Dean of the Medical Faculty, informed him 
that he had passed the final examinations. The commencement ex- 
ercises took place at the New Assembly Kooms, at the corner of 
Lombard and Hanover streets, on March 3, 1860. 




AARON FRIEDENWALD AND BERTHA BAMBERGER 



' 



of 



H3Gfl3aiVlAa AHTflaa QUA dJAWH3C!3lfn 1/lOflAA 



CHAPTEK III. 

Student Days in Berlin (1860-1861). 

My father resolved to continue his medical studies in Europe be- 
fore entering upon the practice of medicine. Such a journey was 
rarely undertaken in those days, and consequently the preparations, 
both on the part of the traveler and on that of his friends, were much 
more elaborate then than they are now. His friends of the Hebrew 
Young Men's Literary Association presented him with a gold-headed 
cane and a set of resolutions expressing their " sincere sorrow at 
parting with one who has been eminent in the faithful discharge of 
his duties and who, being one of the founders of the Association, has 
labored zealously for its welfare." 

A few evenings before his departure he became engaged to Miss 
Bertha Bamberger. The engagement was not announced until his 
return to America, about two years later. In the diary of his 
European trip, in referring to a game of chess with a friend, he 
writes (under date of May 31, 1860) : " This game puts me in mind 

of the last game I played in Baltimore. It was with [his 

betrothed] ; some time ago I first sought her company for the pur- 
pose of having an opportunity of playing chess with a lady. I soon 
found that her conversational powers were far more attractive than 
her chess-playing. . . . This was the game in which occurred 
that lasting check-mate." 

On April 26 he left for New York to embark on May 1 upon the 
steamship TLammonia, of the Hamburg-American line. In New 
York he received a letter from his eldest brother, Bernard Stern, 
giving him good advice and proffering assistance, if needed, add- 
ing: " I hope you will be the_ bright star of our family, which will 



34 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

give pleasure to us all and to yourself. I would acquire knowledge 
not only in the branch of medicine, but in all branches, so that you 
may become a professor in time. This is my wish and that of 
us all." The advice was heeded, and the wish fulfilled. 

His letters and a diary kept at that time may now take up the 
thread of the story. After seeing the sights of Hamburg, he pro- 
ceeded on the twentieth of May directly to Berlin, and matriculated 
at the University. " Matriculating in our country takes about five 
minutes, here very nearly the whole day. On going in and stating 
my desire to matriculate, was asked for my credentials; handed in 
my diploma. Was then asked for my passport; told him that it 
was in the hands of the police department; was told to go for 
it ; and, finding the clerk in a good humor, obtained it, contrary to 
the rules ; it was necessary to go about a mile in my police district 
and get the sanction of the head of the police there, to ask for my 
passport. Was driven in a Droschke to the university, and, after 
signing six or seven documents, was fully matriculated. It was 
then necessary to go to the Dean of the Medical Faculty and get 
another document, then to return to the Quastur at the university, 
to pay for my tickets, then to the various professors' residences to 
get my Anmeldebogen signed." [Diary.] He enrolled himself for the 
following courses : Augenlcranlcheiten und Augenheillcunde, von 
Grsefe; Medizinische Klinxk, Frerichs; Chirurg-augenarztliche 
Klinik, Langenbeck; Elinik fur Augerikranlce, von Graefe; and, 
somewhat later, Pathologie, Virchow; and a practical course in 
ophthalmoscopy under Liebreich. 

The first letter he received from his father expressed the hope that 
his religious attitude would not be altered by his stay abroad. He 
replied : 

Berlin, May £8, 1860. 
Dear Father, 

I hope you will not be too much concerned about my religious 
deportment; for, though I will not promise to equal your piety, I 



Student Days in Berlin. 35 

shall always look upon it as an example with feelings of pride, and 
will endeavor to approach it to such a degree, at least, that when I 
shall meet you again, I shall not give you cause to regret my present 
absence from home. . . . 

Berlin, May 28, 1860. 
Dear Friends, 

I have no doubt you are very anxious to know how I stand my 
absence from home. Well, not having expected to find things quite 
as comfortable as I had them at home, I have not been greatly dis- 
appointed. My situation is, however, comfortable enough to pre- 
vent any serious degree of homesickness ; and, though I often think 
of home and the dear ones I have left behind, as I know that many 
a devout prayer for my success arises there, it is more with feelings 
of pleasure than of pain. Every thought of home acts as a fresh 
stimulus to my energies, and makes me anxious that my return 
should be more satisfactory than speedy. . . . 

I paid my respects to our minister, the Hon. Joseph N. Wright, 
a few days ago, and was cordially received by him. I felt perfectly 
easy in his company; before I left, I felt as though I had known 
him for years. He invited me to repeat my visit. His deportment 
presents a strange contrast to the haughtiness of the Prussian offi- 
cials with whom I came in contact. It has made me fall in love 
afresh with everything American. 

A few evenings since, being in a beer garden, I heard some one 
in the crowd whistling " Yankee Doodle ;" I was affected as by an 
electric shock, was almost involuntarily drawn to the spot, and 
found that the melody emanated from a respectable-looking, well- 
dressed young gentleman. I accosted him with, " What right have 
you to whistle my songs?" No further altercation took place, he 
having established his right by stating that he was an American, 
and a Baltimorean at that, who was here to serve an apprenticeship 



36 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

in a very large mercantile establishment. After this, of course, we 
had a fine time together. . . . 

This morning brought me a letter from David and Eebecca and 
one from Moses. You cannot imagine with what joy I read them. 
It used to amuse me to see our good aunt Koschen read the letters 
she received from Germany, but now I can appreciate her feel- 
ings. ... I could hardly read the letters on account of the 
continued stream of tears which they caused to gush forth. . . . 

Berlin, June 17, 1860. 
Dear Parents, 

I will not attempt to describe my joy on receiving your letter 
dated May 31. I heard on the morning of the fifteenth of the 
arrival of the steamer, and I felt sure that I should receive a 
letter from home. Every time the bell rang, I was on my feet and 
listening anxiously to hear some one inquire for me. At last my 
Wvrth, of whom I had inquired so often about letters, and who, in 
consequence, knew my anxiety, came into my room with the most 
pleasant countenance I ever saw, and two letters in his hand. In 
a moment every muscle in my body was quivering; how often I 
read them over I am now unable to say, but it seemed to me that 
I should never get tired of reading them. I went to the lectures, 
but, despite all my efforts, my thoughts were across the 
ocean. . . . 

I am very much pleased with Berlin; it is a most beautiful city, 
and offers me professional advantages far superior to all I had ever 
anticipated. In one branch of medicine, die Augenheilhunde, Ber- 
lin surpasses every other city in the world. To this branch I am 
at present devoting the most of my time, though I also visit the 
clinics of internal diseases and those of surgery; but in these 
branches they are not much ahead of us. . . . 



Student Days in Berlin. 37 

Berlin, June 17th, 1860. 
Dear Brother Stern, 

Say what you will of Europe, it cannot be denied that one can 
enjoy himself here. In whatever direction you start out from the 
city you encounter places of public amusement, which I know no 
better way of describing than to ask you to picture to yourself 
Paradise as described in the Bible with the addition of lager- 
beer. . . . 

Berlin, June 17, 1860. 
Dear Brother Mose, 
Every Sunday afternoon I spend in the company of 's 



family, and I enjoy myself very much with them. His married sister 
is a remarkably intellectual lady; she is quite a poetess, and has a 
most amiable disposition. During the week, I attend lectures from 
ten A. M. to twelve o'clock, then from 2 P. M. to five o'clock, and 
twice a week from 5 to 6, when I receive private tuition in Latin. 
The rest of the day I spend in my room studying. Occasionally 
during the evenings I take a walk with a young friend of mine; 
sometimes I go to some beer garden, sometimes I stay at home ; and, 
as I find that my correspondence is rather large, I think I shall be 
forced to do this often. ... 

[Diary, June 24, I860.] 
[He called upon some friends.] They proposed to visit two fe- 
males older than most of the old maids in our country. If I were in 
their company, at a loss for a subject for conversation, and especially 
if I wished to choose one upon which . . . they could inform 
me, their appearance would suggest " ancient history." One was 
about forty, the other thirty-five . . . and oh ! how homely ! 

Berlin, July 16, 1860. 
Dear Father, 

. . . I feel very much at home here already, and I like the 



38 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

place so well that I shall probably spend the next session here; it 
commences October 1. 

We had a grand celebration of the Fourth of July at the Ameri- 
can minister's; all the Americans in Berlin were invited, there be- 
ing in all about fifty guests. It came off in the evening. You will 
probably read an account of it in your papers. There was a splen- 
did table set ; the ladies were waited upon, while the gentlemen, in 
true democratic spirit, helped themselves. . . . 

After about an hour's entertainment in the dining hall, we were 
conducted to the spacious parlor, and then the speeches commenced. 
The various states were called upon, and those who were present 
to represent them responded. When old Maryland was announced, 
all my patriotism was aroused, and I made a regular Fourth of July 
speech, which I had prepared for the occasion. 

Berlin, July 16, 1860. 
Liebe Mutter, 

Ich hoffe doss Du Dich wieder von Deiner Unpasslichkeit erholt 
hast; Du wwst gewiss oft deriken, wie es Deinem Aaronchen geht, 
und wie es ihm in der Fremde gefdllt. . . . Wegen mir sollst 
Du ganz unbesorgt sein, denn, obschon ich Dein Aaronchen bin, 
bin ich doch alt genug, mich in der Welt herumzuschlagen. 

Berlin, July 16, 1860. 
Dear Brother Stern, 

I was very happy to receive your kind letter, but I am not able 
to write you a great deal of news, as for the last two weeks, with 
the exception of Sundays, I have been exclusively occupied with 
my studies. You know my wants are not very numerous, and 
therefore I feel very comfortable here. As regards my studies, the 
facilities which Berlin offers far exceed anything that I could have 
expected, and, if for nothing else, I could not fail to become at- 
tached to the place. 



Student Days in Berlin. 39 

Without having lost any of my patriotism, or changed my notions 
of republican government, I must confess that I cannot find as much 
fault with the government here as is generally done. The manner 
in which I think we ought to judge whether a government is good 
or not is by what the people who live under it say. The talk of 
outsiders can lead only to prejudiced opinions. The people here 
enjoy themselves and seem contented; and, as I never hear them 
complain of the government, I must conclude that it is a good one. 
The present Prince Eegent is an excellent monarch, and he is 
spoken of by all with the highest respect. The military here, I 
think, cannot be surpassed in the whole world, and I can well under- 
stand now why the Prussians speak of their soldiers with so much 
pride. I see a good deal of those who guard the palaces, and of 
what is regarded by those living here as necessary to royal pomp, 
for which I know no better designation than " monkey shines." 
Berlin is a beautiful city, abounding in . . . institutions for the 
promotion of the arts and sciences. In one thing I was greatly 
disappointed; I expected to find the professors grey-headed men. 
Grsefe, the greatest oculist in the world, is only thirty-five years 
old. Though I have not confined myself exclusively to any par- 
ticular branch of medicine, I have paid most attention to the dis- 
eases of the eye, surgery, and microscopy. To the latter branch, 
which is a very important one, there is no one in Baltimore who 
has given much attention. 

Berlin, July 22, 1860. 
Dear Father, 

I have till now devoted the most of my time to the study, under 
the renowned Professor Grsefe, of Augeriheilkunde, in which branch 
America is behindhand more than in any other. I attend the medi- 
cal and surgical hospitals every day, so that I may be posted on all 
branches of the profession. ... I continue to prosecute my 
studies with a good deal of zeal, and have no doubt that, if I con- 
4 



40 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

tinue to enjoy good health, my sojourn in Europe will be very 
profitable to me. . . . 

I intend to go to Paris at the close of the session, in March ; and, 
as lectures do not commence there before May, I shall have two 
months to practise French, which will be very advantageous to me. 
So, with the lessons in conversation which I shall take here next 
winter, I think I shall be pretty well prepared to enter upon my 
studies in France. I have not taken any lessons in French here 
yet, but I read a good deal. My time has been too much taken up 
with my other studies. . . . 

Berlin, July 23, 1860. 
Dear Brother Moses, 

Your letter, dated July 3rd, 1860, was handed to me a few hours 
ago; I think it unnecessary to say how glad I was to hear from 
you, for, judging by your own feelings, you can imagine it far bet- 
ter. You must excuse me for not writing as often as you would 
wish, for the family is so large that to write to each of its members 
separately consumes more time than you perhaps imagine. It is 
now eleven o'clock P. M., and, to get through with all the writing 
I have to do, I shall be compelled to encroach a good deal upon the 
night; and I have a lecture to attend at seven o'clock tomorrow 
morning. . . . 

Berlin, July 23, 1860. 
Dear Brother, 

. . . Pretty women are about as scarce here as sensible ones 
are in Baltimore. . . . 

You ask me to give you a description of Berlin and its people. 
Dear Mose, I can now appreciate how difficult it must be to describe 
a place, especially one of the character of Berlin. Oh, how I should 
wish to have the descriptive faculty of Walter Scott! But, not 
having it, and not having time to give full scope to it if I did have 
it, I must content myself with an outline description, leaving it to 




10SES FRIEDENWALD 
i860 






- 



LlJAWH3CI3lfn 8380M 












Student Days in Berlin. 41 

your lively imagination to fill it out. It is a large city of over five 
hundred thousand inhabitants, with fine streets ; the business places 
and private dwellings are not so handsome as in New York. The 
public institutions are numerous and magnificent; the collections 
of science and art would alone repay one for a trip across the At- 
lantic. Every other person you meet wears a uniform. The mili- 
tary are as fine as Prussian Americans claim they are; there is a 
great deal of intelligence among the people; the men I think a 
little conceited; the women, homely. The city abounds in places of 
amusement of various kinds, which are well encouraged. Every 
one here is bound to enjoy himself. You would like to know in 
what a European city differs from an American one. A city here 
has many fine parks, ornamented by the most beautiful statuary; 
besides, it is surrounded by such fine scenery and so many places of 
public amusement, that upon Sundays and holidays the city is nearly 
empty. What I have seen until now forces me to conclude that Ger- 
many is the repository of science and art. 

Some weeks ago I visited a Masonic lodge and was present at an 
initiation. I shall have a good deal to say to you about this when 
I return, but till then " mum is the word." 

. . . I read your remarks upon politics with a great deal of 
interest; I deeply deplore the split in the Democratic party, for I 
think it makes Lincoln's election as good as certain. 

Darmstadt, August 9, 1860. 
Dear Parents and Eelations, 

I have been absent from Berlin since the first of August; have 
visited Dresden, Leipsic, JSTiirnberg, Fiirth, Munich, Ulm, Stutt- 
gart, and Heidelberg; and, after scrambling over the hills of the 
latter, some of which are eighteen hundred feet high, I feel too tired 
to describe my highly interesting journey in the way that I should 
wish to. I have been in a continual ecstasy for the last nine days, 



42 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

and feel that I could never forgive myself had I not seen some of 
the wonders of Germany, and made myself acquainted to some ex- 
tent with the noble character of its people. I have interchanged 
ideas with the intelligent Prussian, heard the melodious talk of the 
charming Saxon, drunk beer with the jolly Bavarian, grasped by 
the hand the honest, though much abused Schwab, and enjoyed a 
chat with the clever Badenser, and after ejaculating repeatedly 
" What a people and what a country ! " I have come to the conclu- 
sion that there are more honest people in the world than my pre- 
vious experience had taught me to think there were. . . . 

I have been enjoying excellent health, and hope, very anxiously 
hope, to hear the same from you. The only thing that troubles me 
is mother's health; I feel very much concerned about her, as you 
seem not to write very explicitly concerning her condition. Please 
do not leave me in a painful ignorance or, what is worse, an awful 
conjecture. 

I shall be with our folks on this side of the ocean in a day or two, 
and shall spend some time with them. I have loafed enough, and 
I am going to work again in good earnest. . . . 

The traveler next passed through Giessen to Bobenhausen, his 
mother's birthplace, where he met a number of relatives ; they were 
overjoyed at his visit, and he spent the remainder of his vacation 
with them. 

Bobenhausen, September 9, 1860. 
Dear Brother Mose, 

. . . You were quite right in supposing that, though there 
is in Europe much to please the eye which we cannot boast of, yet 
in the aggregate we are far better off, and you err greatly when you 
think that the sights in Germany will so dazzle me as to render me 
unable to appreciate the advantages which we Americans enjoy 
under our republican form of government. It is only by foreign 



Student Days in Berlin. 43 

travel that we can properly estimate how much happier we are, 
under a government based upon the principles of equality, civil and 
religious liberty, etc., than those are who are forced to recognize in 
another their superior, because he is the offspring of a rotten 
. . . system called here the nobility, and those who live where 
it is decided whether one is eligible to certain positions or not, ac- 
cording to the number of gods he puts his trust in. Though I must 
bear testimony to the many improvements that the governments of 
Europe have been forced to introduce, yet there is much left undone. 
As regards the scattered tribe of Israel here, their burden has 
been somewhat lightened. There are many positions which their 
faith excludes them from, and this is a fruitful source of conver- 
sions. I have inquired as to what their complaints are in this hilly 
and stony region, and I find that their position is not an enviable 
one. There are in the immediate neighborhood of this place vil- 
lages in which Israelites are not permitted to live. The Jews also 
have to contribute to the liquidation of the church debt. Starker 
Tabak, nicht wahr? In other respects they are exposed to fewer 
abuses than we might be led to suppose. I have travelled a good 
deal through Germany, but have not heard the word " Hep " used. 
I have made a good many inquiries, and am told that the " Ri- 
shuth " of which we have heard so much is fast becoming extinct. 
Even in Bayern our co-religionists delight to speak of the rapid 
emancipation which is going on there. In Austria I have not been, 
and there their lot is still deplorable. I have been thus explicit in 
my description of affairs here in order to show you that, while I 
can admire the beautiful things of the old world, my antipathy 
against political oppression, and particularly that which is directed 
against the members of our faith, has not in the least subsided. 

Bobenhausen, September 9, 1860. 
Dear Brother Joe, 

Yours dated August 22 was received with great gratification. 



44 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

You do not wish it to be considered an answer to mine; I shall 
therefore consider it sufficient to comply with your request to 
send you a copy of my Fourth of July speech at Berlin. You 
must take into consideration that it was composed at a time when 
I was so occupied with my studies that there was but little oppor- 
tunity left me for that reflection which a good speech requires. All 
the time that I could afford to devote to its composition was two 
hours in the afternoon of the Fourth, and I committed it to memory 
while dressing. Had it not been that I knew that the folks at home 
desired it, I would not have spared that time. 

Mr. Minister, Ladies and Gentlemen, 

It was a son of Maryland who first sang so beautifully of the 
Star-spangled Banner, and she will be the last to erase from it the 
star which represents her devotion to the Union. 

I am happy to meet you here this evening and to join in the cele- 
bration of an event to which not only is the happiness of the Ameri- 
can people ascribable, but which has also exerted a mighty influence 
for the advancement of mankind in every quarter of the globe. 
Have we not just cause to be proud in pointing to the position that 
the United States has assumed among the nations of the earth, as 
proving the practicability of those sacred principles set forth in the 
Declaration of Independence? Not yet have all of those passed 
away who gazed with troubled emotions on that cloud of adversity 
which hung over the colonies, who felt the galling effect of that op- 
pression to which they were then subjected, and who heard the dread- 
ful clanking of the chains which were then being forged to fetter 
them still further ; and a country which was forced to contend against 
innumerable influences that were calculated to stunt its growth and 
render gloomy its future, a country which was bereft of every hope, 
except that which it could place in the patriotism of its sons, has, 
by establishing those sacred principles, reached a position securing 
the happiness of its citizens, and expressing a national greatness 



Student Days in Berlin. 45 

commanding the respect of the world. The scoffs and sneers which 
were directed against the struggles of the sage heads and brave 
hearts of '76 have long since ceased, . . . except where they 
reflect their own insignificance; and while anthems of gratitude 
are now ascending to heaven from every portion of the Union, from 
the Atlantic to the Pacific, for the blessings accruing therefrom, a 
prayer of the true lovers of humanity everywhere for their continu- 
ance is mingled therewith. When we contemplate the greatness 
which the Union has attained, despite the many difficulties against 
which it was forced to contend in its organization and since then, 
must we not be convinced that the principles of truth and justice 
upon which it was reared have elicited the protection of Divine 
Providence, and that its stability is unquestionable ? Let this be a 
consolation to those who, from an intensity of enthusiasm, imagine 
danger to the Union, and let it teach the world that the tendency 
of American statesmanship must still be onward, onward ! 

September 9, 1860. 
Dear Niece Lina, 

For the present I shall not preach to you, for I imagine you to 
be too good a girl to require it; but, if you should find that my 
sermons are of any assistance to you in repelling those foolish no- 
tions to which many of our young ladies fall a prey, you can have 
them at short notice. Though I am always pleased to receive your 
letters, and under all circumstances find them interesting, permit 
me to lay down several principles to guide you in their composition. 

First, under all circumstances let them be grammatically correct; 
for, while a little slang in conversation is often pardoned, when per- 
petrated in the august presence of pen, ink, and paper, and by those 
from whom better can well be expected, it becomes a target for the 
most painful ridicule. 

Secondly, in the construction of your sentences strive to bestow 



46 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

upon them that polish which is expressive of education and refine- 
ment. In our age of civilization, language has ceased to be merely 
a series of articulations by which persons may understand each 
other, but has also become an index to one's intellectual resources. 
Thirdly, do not tolerate the old-fashioned idea that letters must 
necessarily be news-mongers; regard them more as vehicles of 
thought. In times gone by, in order to prevent any company that 
was assembled from falling asleep, when there was no unusual oc- 
currence to relate, hobgoblin stories were abundantly invented. 
Now, when people think more, it has not been found impossible to 
hold a conversation, even if one's neighbor has not broken a leg; 
and grandma can continue her knitting without being frightened 
as she formerly was by having her attention drawn to haunted 
spots. As letters are nothing but the means of holding a conversa- 
tion at a distance, they have undergone a similar change. . . . 

Bobenhausen, September 9, 1860. 
Dear Brother Stern, 

Besides the ladies there is much else here which I do not think 
as beautiful as in America. I have acquainted myself a little with 
affairs in the interior of Germany, and find that they present a great 
contrast to what I have seen in the cities. While the cities are re- 
positories of science and art and everything has a refined tone, in 
the country, and especially about here, ignorance and poverty 
abound to an enormous extent. There is little done for education 
outside of the cities. The government thinks that those subjects 
who know the least are the easiest to govern, and therefore it makes 
knowledge as difficult to acquire as possible. They talk a great 
deal about making children go to school seven and eight years; let 
me explain this to you. Children have but from one to two, and, 
when further advanced, three hours' school a day; and this under 
persons who are half teachers and half farmers. They are taught 



Student Days in Bebxin. 47 

to read and write and cipher a little, and that is all. Whether this 
is the case in all the provinces of Germany I do not know, hut so 
it is in Hesse-Darmstadt. 

People lead a wretched sort of life here; even those who can af- 
ford it seldom eat meat. The Jews, who live far better than the 
Christians, have meat but once a week. I have often heard it stated 
that, despite all this, people are healthier than with us ; this is not 
so. Our country people look far better than people do about 
here. . . . 

Bobenhausen, September 10, 1860. 
Liebe Mutter, 

Ich hojfe, wenn dieses Dich antreffen wird, dass Du von den 
Klauen der schmerzhaften und langdauernden Krankheit welche 
Du dulden musstest, oefreit sein wirst. In Tceinem Falle lasse den 
Muth sinkenj sei guter Hoffnung. . . . Schon oft war eine 
dunkle Wolke uber Dir ausgedehnt, und doch wurdest Du aus der 
Gefahr, die Dir drohte, gerettet. Nach dem Regen scheint die 
Sonne; mogen ihre Strahlen Dir bald Heil und Segen bringen, und 
zeigen dass ^snsr ~mw \W" nSi Dir kS, " es schlaft und schlum- 
mert nicht der Euter Israels." . . . 

On September 29 my father left Bobenhausen for Frankfort. 
Here he spent the Feast of Tabernacles, visiting the synagogue of 
the distinguished rabbi, Samson Kaphael Hirsch. 

[Diary, October 1, I860.] 
" I was very anxious to hear Dr. Hirsch, about whom I had 
heard so much. I was not disappointed. The subject of his discus- 
sion was the Feast of Tabernacles, and so beautifully were the pur- 
poses of the various ceremonies explained that I felt very sorry for 
every time I had forgotten to " bless the lulab." 

On October 3 he left for Mayence and Cologne, returning to 
Berlin on the morning of the fifth of October. 



48 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

The courses for which he was enrolled during the following 
semester were: Demonstrations-Cursus det pathologischen Anato- 
mie, Virchow; Ueber Krankhafte Geschwulste, Virchow; Ueber 
allgemeine Pathologie und Therapie, Virchow; TJeber Augenkrank- 
heiten, von Graefe; Klinik fur Augenkranke, von Graefe; Cursus der 
Augenoperationen, von Grsefe; Ueber Kinderkrankheiten, Martin; 
Ueber Syphilidologie, S. Barensprung. 

[Diary, October 15, I860.] 
" This being the fiftieth anniversary of the University, there are 
a great many preparations to celebrate the event. This morning 
the Festzug takes place. The professors in their gowns and red 
caps head the procession, followed by guests from abroad and then 
by the students, with the banners, dress, and colors of their Verbind- 
ungen." . . . 

" This evening there is a great torchlight procession in celebra- 
tion of the fiftieth anniversary of the university. I participate, 
and take part in the Commers." 

Berlin, October 19, 1860. 
Liebe Mutter, 

Nach langer und grosser Yerlegenheit habe ich die freudige 
Nachricht erJialten, dass Du Dich jetzt viel besser befindest. Wie 
glucklich mich dieses gemacht hat! Gott sei dafiir gedankt. Moge 
er Dich bald von dieser grausamen Krankheit ganz befreit 
haben. . . . 

Berlin, November 2, 1860. 
Dear Father, 

. . . I am not able to write you much, as I have not paid at- 
tention to anything but my studies since the session commenced. 
I am at lectures and clinics from eight o'clock in the morning to 
five, six, and sometimes seven o'clock in the evening; and at night 



Student Days in Beelin. 49 

I am in my room to digest what I have seen and heard during the 
day. 1 So all that I could write you about Berlin would be the 
dreadful tale of the sick, the dying, and the dead, a subject which 
I do not think can interest you. . . . Best assured, dear father, 
that I fully appreciate the importance of the mission which induced 
me to leave my home, my country, and my friends, and that I shall 
spare no effort to make my absence profitable to myself and satis- 
factory to my friends. . . . 

Beelin, December 4, 1860. 
Deae Fathee, 

In a few days it will be Chanuklcah, though I do not expect to see 
anything here to remind me of it, as the only holiday which those 
of our coreligionists with whom I am acquainted here celebrate in 
the family circle with any zeal is Christmas. This is the great 
progress which those who claim to be the most enlightened have 
made. They free themselves from the ceremonials of our religion, 
and embrace similar ceremonials of another. They ridicule ortho- 
doxy for seeking to commemorate a great epoch in the history of 
the Jewish nation through the burning of Chanuklcah lights, but 
imitate the Christians in having Christmas bushes, hung with lights, 
etc., thus insulting the memory of their forefathers by regarding as 
a festival a day which initiated for them centuries of oppression. I 
do not wish to affect piety, but when I see that the tendency of en- 
lightened Judaism here, instead of ridding itself of what may 
really not be compatible with the age we live in, is rather a gradual 
sneaking into Christianity, the old forms of our religion have an 
especial charm. Dear Father, you entertained great fears on my 
departure that I would entirely forget our religion, but rest assured 



1 A large mass of neatly-written notes in my possession give evidence 
of the care with which he recorded at the end of each day what he 
had heard and seen. 



50 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

that what I have seen of " enlightened Judaism " here has disclosed 
our old, assailed, insulted orthodoxy in a more beautiful form than 
I had yet beheld it. . . . 

Berlin, December 4, 1860. 
Dear Brother Joe, 

. . . The people here are courteous to strangers, and know 
how to entertain them. In one thing the German differs greatly 
from the American; he knows how to enjoy himself. I attend the 
soirees of the American minister here, and was present at the re- 
cent Thanksgiving celebration, but I find American society so dry 
that I greatly prefer the society of my German friends. I hesitate 
not to say that the Germans have as many advantages over us so- 
cially as we have over them politically. . . . 

[Diary, December 21, I860.] 
I purchased two books, Dr. Grsefe's Elinische Analyse and Vir- 
chow's C ellular-Pathologie, which I propose to study through during 
the holidays. 

The weather is very cold and the heating is inadequate to render 
me comfortable in my chamber. Though I have had my room 
heated as well as this can be done by my Wirthin and her porcelain 
stove, my fingers are stiff as I write this. I study in my rooms with 
two coats on. 

Berlin, December 31, 1860. 
Liehe Mutter, 

. . . Du wirst oft, oline Zweifel, an Deinen Sohne, der so 
weit uber den Ocean von Dir entfernt ist, denken, und wunschen, 
mit ihm einige Gedanlcen zu wechseln. Nicht minder, glaube es r 
sind seine Gedanlcen mit Dir beschdftigt. Denn sei der Reiz der 
Fremde noch so gross, . . . so findet man doch nirgends die 
zdrtliche und liebevolle Mutter. Wie oft wunsche ich, ein Meines 
Stiindchen in Deiner Gegenwart zu verweilen. Und wenn wir auch 



Student Days in Berlin. 51 

den Schmerz der Trennung fiihlen miissen, so bleibt uns doch 
die Freude der Hoffnung ubrig, uns wieder gluchlich anzutref- 
fen. . . . 

Berlin, January 21, 1860. 
Dear Father, 

. . . I have paid most attention lately to the diseases of the 
eye, as it is in this branch particularly that we are behind hand in 
America. A great many who, with us, are condemned by physicians 
to perpetual blindness are here . . . restored to sight. . . . 
I feel myself particularly fortunate in being able to enjoy the in- 
struction of Professor von Graefe, who is now without doubt the 
greatest oculist in the world. I attend all of his lectures, clinics, 
and operations, and learn to perform all the operations on the eye 
under him. We practice a good deal in this way on the dead. 
Though I have taken a particular fancy to this part of the science, 
I visit the other hospitals as much as I can, and I devote myself 
particularly to those things which we have no good opportunity of 
studying at home, as, for instance, midwifery and the diseases of 
women and children. I shall remain here till the middle of March 
or the first of April, and then I shall repair to Paris. The session 
will probably commence there about the first of May. I shall prob- 
ably like Paris very well, as I can now get along very well in the 
French language. I have studied it a good deal during my sojourn 
here, and have a good deal of opportunity to speak it and to hear it 
spoken. I meet physicians here from nearly every part of the world, 
who come to enjoy the great advantages which Berlin offers. I meet 
Americans, Kussians, Poles, Frenchmen, Hollanders, Greeks, Eng- 
lishmen, etc. I feel very contented here, as I am every day more 
and more convinced of the great professional advantages which my 
visit to Europe gives me. . . . 

You may imagine how anxious we all feel here about the present 
distracted state of polities in America. "Whenever there is an ar- 



52 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

rival of a steamer announced, all the Americans here hurry to the 
minister for the news. Every fresh report, till now, has been the 
harbinger of greater evils. I have given up all hope of a peaceable 
settlement of the great trouble. 

While you are in the midst of political commotion across the 
water, things are far from presenting a peaceable aspect here. You 
probably have heard that, on the first instant, the King of Prussia 
departed this life, and was succeeded by his brother, who is now 
King Wilhelm I. This event has caused but few tears to flow; and, 
had not all public places of amusement been closed for three weeks, 
the Prussians would have had nothing to complain of. The present 
king is very popular. He has announced his opposition to the 
policy of Denmark in Holstein, which will probably lead to war; 
and, as Napoleon has allied himself with Denmark, the situation 
will no doubt assume a serious character. Besides this it is expected 
that Italy will again, next spring, form the scene of human slaugh- 
ter. Hungary is in a very rebellious condition at present, and, un- 
less Austria relents in her tyranny, she may be forced to part with 
another piece of territory. If folks could appreciate the danger of 
so many governments adjoining each other, I have no hesitation 
in saying that there would be but few who would favor a severance 
of our Union. They would be inclined rather " to bear the ills we 
have, than fly to others that we know not of." 

There is a great contrast presented between politics here and in 
America. While there is a tendency to form a "United Germany, as 
folks here have long convinced themselves that only in union is 
there strength, Americans are willing to destroy the Union and with 
it the greatest guarantee of their future prosperity. I just feel like 
making a few stump speeches in the " States," not that I flatter 
myself that I could dissuade secessionists from their design, but 
that I might tell them what great fools they are. Though I have 
met Americans here from every portion of the Union, I have not 
met one who is in favor of secession. . . . 



Student Days in Berlin. 53 

The attitude taken in this letter is the more significant, inas- 
much as he " confesses," in a letter written at this same period, that 
his feelings were " strongly antagonistic to the North." 

The following extract is taken from the " Maryland and Virginia 
Medical Journal," Volume XVI. (January-May, 1861), p. 348, 
under the heading of " Foreign Correspondence." 

"We take pleasure in announcing to our readers that we have 
made arrangements with a competent medical gentleman, a gradu- 
ate of the University of Maryland, to furnish us with a series of 
letters from the principal medical centers of Europe. The first of 
the number, a letter from Berlin, we give below. — Editors." 

Berlin, January 24, 1861. 

Messrs. Editors : — In conformity with your request, I shall now 
communicate to you some of my observations in the medical sphere 
of Berlin. I have been here during the greater part of two sessions 
of the University, and, having availed myself of the superior clinical 
facilities which this place affords, in the various branches of the 
profession, I am led to believe that I shall be able to furnish you 
with some interesting facts. 

I have found that the medical luminaries here are zealously de- 
voted to the cultivation of the science, on the basis which distin- 
guishes medicine of the present day from that of former times. In 
regarding nothing as reliable which does not emanate from ample 
observation, scientific research, and rational deductions, they have 
been able to free [medicine] from many of the false notions which 
had gained a stronghold by tradition, and to contribute a great deal 
of valuable material to its reconstruction. 

There are three hospitals connected with the University of Ber- 
lin — the Charite (to which add the famous Pathological Institute), 
the Konigliche Klinilc der Universitiit, and the Obstetric Hospital. 
I need only announce the names of Virchow, Grsefe, Frerichs, 



54 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Traube, Langenbeck, Jiingken, Bserensprung, and Martin, in connec- 
tion with the institutions I have named, to convey to you an idea 
of their character. The Charite is a large and magnificent edifice, 
in which the following clinical lectures take place daily : — two medi- 
cal clinics, the one by Frerichs, the other by Traube; a surgical 
clinic by Jiingken; a clinic for venereal diseases and diseases of 
the skin by Bserensprung; a gynecological clinic by Martin; and a 
clinic for diseases of children by Ebert. Langenbeck conducts a 
surgical clinic at the Konigliche KUnih der Universitat, and Rom- 
berg has a clinic on the diseases of the nervous system in the same 
institution. Martin delivers clinical lectures at the Obstetric Hos- 
pital three times a week. 

I think I will best meet the object of this correspondence by 
writing what I think may interest you in relation to the names I 
have mentioned. I shall begin with Dr. Albreeht von Graefe, Ex- 
traordinary Professor in the University. He has for many years 
diligently applied his genius to the study of ophthalmology, and 
has thereby contributed much to the progress which this branch of 
science has made. Among the many great merits which may be 
claimed by him, the one standing paramount is his satisfactory de- 
scription of glaucoma, the explanation of its symptoms, and what 
is more than all, the treatment which he has proposed for it, and 
successfully practiced. He has proven beyond a doubt that the phe- 
nomena which this affection produces, depend on a preternatural 
intra-ocular pressure. He has called attention to the tense condi- 
tion of the globe of the eye in support of this view, and has demon- 
strated with the ophthalmoscope the pulsation of the arteries of the 
retina, which never becomes sensible to sight under any other 
condition. 

As Grsefe's highly valuable contributions on this subject have, as 
I believe, not yet appeared in English literature, you will, perhaps, 
indulge a few sketches from my notes in connection therewith. 



Student Days in Berlin. 55 

[Here follows a full description of the different forms of glau- 
coma, and of the nature and treatment of the disease, in the course 
of which my father says] : 

Having noticed that excision of a piece of the iris, in pursuing 
other indications, greatly reduced intraocular pressure, he tested 
Its efficiency in glaucoma and found it fraught with the happiest 
results. 2 

Grsefe has under his charge a fine hospital, the Augen-Klinile, 
devoted to the diseases of the eye exclusively. Here he delivers 
clinical lectures three times a week, each lasting two hours ; in addi- 
tion to this, he also delivers theoretical lectures on the diseases of 
the eye. He also conducts a practical course of operative ocular 
.surgery, in which, supplying his pupils with phantoms, eyes, rabbits, 
and subjects, he offers them every facility to qualify themselves in 
this branch. His assistants, Drs. Leibreich and Schweigger re- 
spectively, teach the application of the ophthalmoscope, and the 
.normal and pathological anatomy of the eye. 

Grsefe is in the prime of life, and devotes himself entirely to the 
interests of the science. . . . 

My father wrote for this journal two other letters, which were 
not published, owing to the suspension of its publication at the out- 
break of the Civil War. In one of these letters, written from Ber- 
lin, he says : 

" One of the principal objects which attract medical men here 

3 My father recognized the importance of Graefe's discovery, which 
proved to be one of the greatest advances in surgery made during the 
nineteenth century, although such medical lights as Wharton Jones 
-and William Mackenzie found " little in it worthy of imitation " 
(1853). Graefe had announced his discovery in 1857, and an English 
•translation of his memoirs was published by the New Sydenham So- 
ciety in 1859. A few articles on iridectomy were published in Great 
Britain before 1861, but the first mention of Graefe's discovery which 
I can find in American medical literature is that made in my father's 
^article. Active discussion of the subject in America began in 1863. 
5 



56 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

from abroad, is to pursue the study of Pathology. There is proba- 
bly no other place where this branch is cultivated so successfully, 
and where its study is facilitated by so many advantages. This is 
attributable to the merits of Professor Eudolf Virchow. I am per- 
suaded that a few words with reference to this great man will not 
be uninteresting to the readers of your valuable journal. I am not 
so bold as to attempt to pass an encomium on his genius ; the efful- 
gence in which this is reflected from his many contributions to- 
science would render the praise of even the most accomplished pen 
superfluous. There is one trait of his character, however, to which 
I may be permitted to refer. I allude to his indefatigable industry. 
Even those who are perfectly familiar with his many works, and 
who fully appreciate the amount of observation and research which 
the subjects on which he has so ably written require, will have 
formed but a low estimate of the degree of his application unless 
they have observed him in his sphere of labor. During the session 
of the University he devoted three hours each day to imparting in- 
struction, embracing a demonstrative course of Pathological Anat- 
omy and Microscop3 r , for which the Charite furnished abundant ma- 
terial, a practical course of Pathological Histology in which his 
pupils are exercised in making microscopical preparations, and a 
theoretical course of lectures on General Pathology, including Gen- 
eral Pathological Anatomy. It was mainly through his exertions 
that the Pathological Institute was established. Here he makes his 
scientific researches and imparts his oral instructions in that agree- 
able style so peculiar to him. His assistants, Drs. Hoppe and von 
Eecklinghausen, contribute in no small degree to the utility of this 
institution; the former, who conducts a demonstrative course on 
Physiological and Pathological Chemistry, has recently been elected 
to a professorship in the University of Tubingen ; the latter conducts 
a practical course in Anatomical Histology. When we take inta 
consideration the immense amount of labor which Virchow has de- 



Student Days in Berlin. 57 

voted to medicine as an academical teacher, as author of the Cellu- 
lar-Pathologic and Gesammelte Abliandlungen, as editor of the 
Archiv fur Pathologische Anatomie, of the Handbuch der Spe- 
ciellen Paihologie und Therapie, as one of the editors of Canstatts 
Jahresbericht der Gesammten Medicin, through his activity in the 
medical societies of Wuerzburg and Berlin, and as one of the physi- 
cians to the Gharite, it would hardly be supposed that he could have 
found the time to apply his talents in another direction. But this 
has nevertheless been the case. Virchow is as patriotic as he is 
scientific. In '48 he took a prominent stand, through his mighty 
pen and eloquent public speeches, as the champion for the people. 
Since then he has never permitted an opportunity to escape him 
when he could render any service to the cause of political reform. 
The course which he has pursued as a member of the Stadt Ab- 
geordneten Haus, and of the National Verein, which has a united 
Germany for its aim, has won for him a high place in the esteem of 
the people. [Here follows an interesting description of Yirchow's 
recent discovery of amyloid degeneration.] 

The third letter is devoted to the surgical work of Professor Lan- 
genbeck of Berlin, and especially to his scientific operation in joint 
resection and to his contribution to the surgery of the veins. 

Berlin, February — , 1861. 
Dear Moses, 

. . . I feel proud of old Maryland for the conservative char- 
acter she has exhibited, and would rather identify myself with her 
interests alone, than be linked either to the ruthless domineering 
of a debauched, black Republicanism under the influence of victory, 
or to the hot-headed, impulsive, fanatic, unreliable, irresponsible 
" cotton politicians '•' who have for years boasted of chivalry, and 
who have shown a craven spirit at their defeat, a defeat which they 
inflicted upon themselves. With South Carolina I have not the least 



58 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

sympathy, for I consider that she has insulted the whole South by 
her precipitate action, seeming to be led by the ambitious design 
of being recognized as the leader in a movement in which they all 
had a common interest, to disdain to await their co-opera- 
tion. . . . 

In a letter dated February 26, 1861, he says: "My antipathy to 
the " Black Republican " party has probably led you to suppose that 
I join in the sentiments of the secessionists. This is, however, 
not the case. I regard the Union as a holy institution, against which 
no tongue can speak but in blasphemy, against which no hand can 
be directed but in sacrilege. I rely upon the good sense and patriot- 
ism of the American people for a speedy settlement of existing dif- 
ficulties. The border states have proven that a healthy public opin- 
ion exists in them ; and, as they are the bone and sinew of the Con- 
federacy, I have no doubt that they will be able to reconcile the 
extremists of the two sections of the country with each other." 

Berlin, March 10, 1861. 
Dear Father, 

. . . All the lectures I attended have ended, with the ex- 
ception of one which will be closed in four or five days, and then 
I shall set out for Paris. 

I have studied French pretty closely during my sojourn here, 
and I feel convinced that I shall not experience much difficulty 
when I shall be forced to hear and speak that language exclusively. 
Since my departure from America I have enjoyed the great blessing 
of uninterrupted good health and fine spirits. With Berlin I have 
every reason to be satisfied, having been able to acquire a good deal 
of valuable knowledge, and to enjoy, at the hands of the friends 
that I have made, genuine German hospitality. 



CHAPTER IV. 
Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna (1861-1862) . 

On March 20 he left Berlin for Paris. " I thought my legs 
would freeze." But he met agreeable companions, and "we 
enjoy ourselves very well, at least as well as one can with the 
stiff limbs which twenty-four hours' continuous travel inflicts." 
[Diary]. 

Paris, April 15, 1861. 
Dear Parents, 

. . . First of all you are no doubt anxious to hear from me 
how I like Paris. Despite all the descriptions I had heard, it so far 
surpassed all the anticipations I had formed that, when I first ar- 
rived, I felt like an Eastern Shoreman who for the first time sees 
a city. I might write you a good deal about the city itself, but I 
cannot postpone saying a few words in relation to that which inter- 
ests me more, viz., the facilities which it offers for the object of my 
visit. 

Since my arrival here I have regularly attended the clinics at 
the hospitals and the lectures at the University, 1 and found that my 
studies in the French language enabled me to understand all that 
I heard. There are a few branches of the profession for the study 
of which Paris offers facilities probably far surpassing those in 
any other place in the world, which, I am convinced, will repay me 
for the time I shall spend here. In general, however, I find the 

*He attended the ophthalmological clinics of Desmarres, Sichel, and 
Fano, the surgical clinics of Nelaton and Chassaignac, and also several 
courses in obstetrics, surgical anatomy, and other subjects. 



60 Aaeon Friedenwald, M. D. 

instruction given here somewhat superficial, and I do not believe 
that I shall learn as much as I did in Germany. I shall be able 
to inform myself in those branches for which Paris is so justly 
famous, and, as I do not wish to lose any time, I expect to spend 
next winter in Vienna, if nothing transpires before that time to 
cause me to change my mind. It is impossible not to like Paris, 
and I feel very comfortable and contented here, though I was forced 
to accustom myself to a mode of living hitherto strange to 
me. . . . 

Paris, April 30, 1861. 
Dear Brother Moses, 

I have received yours of the eleventh inst. with accompanying 
papers, informing me of the deplorable state of politics in the 
once United States of America. Disagreeable as it must be to those 
who are eye witnesses of the dreadful drama, it is no less painful 
for one at a distance to observe into what nothingness our country 
is sinking in the eyes of the world. The commencement of war by 
the affair at Charleston was in itself laughable enough, yet points 
to all the calamities of a civil war. My feelings in regard to the 
subject which brought on this great political calamity are, as I 
should judge from the tenor of your letters, at variance with those 
you entertain. 

The election of Lincoln has been assigned by the Southern states 
[as the cause] that would prevent a reconciliation of the differences 
existing between the various sections of the country on the slavery 
question. What was it that elected Lincoln? Did not the cotton 
states, by dismembering the opposition, bring it about? It was as- 
serted that, after a Republican triumph, there would be no protec- 
tion to the institutions of the South. This assertion came from a 
quarter which was least affected by the political change ! South 
Carolina, which had not lost a " nigger " for fifty years, declared its 
independence, while Virginia, Maryland, and Kentucky, with every- 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 61 

thing to risk, still remained loyal to the Union, and would have 
continued to do so, had they not been forced to protect their South- 
ern brethren in case of collision. Besides, the basis upon which 
the Confederate States rest, the right of secession without the con- 
sent of the other states whenever a state pleases, does not appear to 
me to be one upon which a sound fabric could be raised. . . . 
I am as much opposed to the Eepublican party a as you are, but I 
do not feel disposed to unite myself with every one of its assailants. 
So much for politics. . . . 

Paris is a great place for surgery; in fact, it is the only place 
where it is well taught, and to this branch I shall for the most part 
devote my attention while here. . . . 

Paris, June 2, 1861. 
Dear Father, 

. . . Paris is such a delightful place that it would be impos- 
sible not to be satisfied here. On the whole, I think I shall profit 
considerably by my sojourn here. I am a much greater admirer of 
the German medical institutions than of the French. In Germany 
everything connected with medicine rests upon a sounder basis, and 
one can place more reliance upon what one hears there than he can 
upon what he hears in Paris. There are several branches of the 
profession which are cultivated with greater success here, and I 
have applied myself particularly to the study of these subjects. I 
agree with you that I am fortunate in being so far removed from 
the scene of those dreadful political agitations now raging in 
America. I am perfectly convinced that, if a few more had had an 
opportunity of comparing the political institutions of Europe with 
those of our hitherto happy country, there would be considerably 
less eagerness evinced for a dissolution of the Union. 

* His political views changed in time. He later became a stanch 
Republican. 



62 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Paris, June 2, 1861. 
Dear Brother Moses, 

Your letter of the sixth ult. lies before me. Though I have kept 
myself pretty well informed concerning the political proceedings- 
at home, thanks to the London Times, your account was neverthe- 
less interesting. The papers which you sent me I have not yet re- 
ceived; but, as they generally come a little later than my letters, 
I may receive them in a few days. I cannot share your secessionist 
views; this may be due to my being removed so far from the field 
of action, or, perhaps, to our different way of thinking; the latter 
seems to me to be more probable. The Union has always appeared 
to me as a sacred structure, against which no hand could be raised 
save in sacrilege. What is it that caused so many to abandon this 
sentiment, which they were hitherto prepared to defend by all the 
means at their disposal? Is it, perhaps, the triumph of the Ee- 
publican party at the last election? In considering the question, 
let us lose sight of those who, during their entire existence, have 
been so impregnated with nullifieationism, who have gained such a 
world-wide notoriety on account of their pecular disposition to tar- 
and-feathering, who hitherto worshipped with such zeal at the 
shrine of the Bowie knife, the revolver, and the " Brooksing sys- 
tem," that no excess in which they may indulge requires an expla- 
nation. Excluding these men, whose views do not deserve any con- 
sideration, I think the rest over the spirit of whose dreams there 
has appeared such a sudden change may be divided into three 
classes: first, those who, dreading an intolerable degree of emacia- 
tion on their expulsion from the trough at which they have so long 
indulged in the process of fattening themselves, explain the election 
of Lincoln as a subterfuge in order to resort to the next best means 
of " saving their bacon ;" secondly, those who honestly believed that 
the change which took place in the administration on the fourth of 
March was incompatible with the safety of the South ; and, thirdly, 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 63 

those, — and these, I think, form the largest party, — who, under 
the pressure of an excited state of public opinion, were compelled 
to swell the ranks of the two parties first mentioned. 

As regards the professional politicians, I am persuaded that, after 
the course which they pursued in the Charleston convention, there 
can be no doubt remaining as to their motive. It was evident then, 
and the result of the last election has proved it, that the Democratic 
party of the South, with the aid of the large conservative party in 
the North, had it not been dismembered by the proceedings of that 
convention, would have placed a national candidate in the Presiden- 
tial chair. It is all " moonshine " to speak of the dissensions then 
existing as resting upon abstract questions. I cannot understand 
how there can be any who support the opinion that " squatter sove- 
reignty " — a doctrine to explain which would require the talent of 
a Philadelphia lawyer — was the rock upon which the Democratic 
party foundered. Is there the least ground for entertaining this 
opinion, if we do not shut our eyes completely to the history of that 
party, teeming as it does with instances of compromises, conces- 
sions, and everything that offers the least prospect of carrying an 
election ? I cannot for the life of me think otherwise than that the 
leaders, feeling that their demoralization had reached a degree 
which, if it did not threaten immediate defeat, would at least ab- 
breviate their political existence, considered it expedient to take 
time by the forelock and grasp the doctrine of secession, in order 
to begin a new career. They were no doubt disappointed in this, 
as they did not expect at the time that it would cost even more 
blood to sever the Union than it did to cement it. 

It is a matter of no little surprise that those who honestly be- 
lieved that the institutions of the South were rendered insecure by 
a Eepublican victory were those who had the least to lose in that 
event. This fear would never have moved the people of Virginia, 
or Maryland, or Kentucky, or Missouri, or Tennessee to think of 



64 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

severing their alliance with the North. South Carolina, Georgia, 
and Alabama, who would be compelled to search their archives 
for years to find a single case of the abduction of a negro by the 
" underground railroad," were the first to think of additional pro- 
tection for their property. If there is no protection for the institu- 
tions of the South under the Union, with a Constitution recognizing 
them and a President sworn to obey the Constitution, what would 
the slaveholders have to expect, if the North were relieved of its 
present obligation ? When we hear of the great enthusiasm and un- 
divided sentiment in favor of secession existing in the South, are 
we really to believe that the Union sentiment which existed but a 
few months ago has been completely metamorphosed? I, for one, 
am not of this opinion; an excited public opinion can easily force 
people to abandon principles which they entertained before. 
" Those who are not with us are against us " is the powerful argu- 
ment to which the secessionists have resorted, and which has forced 
so many under their banners. We Baltimoreans have had suffi- 
cient evidence of the force of excited public opinion. I recollect 
very well when it was nothing less than dangerous to say the least 
thing against " Know-nothingism," which is now, thank God, so 
completely defunct. As it was then held that everything anti- 
" Know-nothing " was un-American, so now everything Union is 
confounded with Abolitionism. 

Now a few words with regard to Maryland. I might at first say 
something about the right of secession, but I may dispense with 
this at present, as I have referred to it in my previous letters, and 
as my letter is attaining an inordinate length. It appears to me 
that the Southerners have no more right to secede from the Union 
than they have to cut their throats. You may call it heroic on the 
part of South Carolina to hoist the palmetto flag, but as she thereby 
dragged Virginia and Maryland and Kentucky, etc., into this great 
difficulty against their will, I call it treacherous and faithless. If 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 65 

all the Southern states felt the necessity of secession . . . things 
would have had a different aspect, but if one Southern border state 
had refused to secede, then all the rest should have renounced the 
idea of secession as a necessary concession of the majority to the 
minority. . . . You will excuse me for digressing from the 
consideration of the position of Maryland. What I have said about 
secession was not intended at all to present in full my views on the 
subject of secession itself; it was intended merely as the basis of 
the views I hold in relation to the course which Maryland ought to 
pursue. It would be superfluous on my part to say whether or not 
Maryland should at once join the secessionists and bid defiance to 
the government of the United States. You admit her position in 
that case would be highly perilous. I fully share your views on this 
point. What is she to do? Is she to remain a passive spectator 
and await the chance of war, and thus heap upon herself both the 
hatred of the North and the distrust of the South ? I think when 
we take into consideration the result of this trouble her position is 
clear. I have no doubt that, even in case of the triumph of the 
North, — and everything is in favor of this, — a final separation will 
take place. Supposing this to be the ease, what would be her posi- 
tion in a Southern Confederacy, with her history in this trouble? 
Why, it is clear she would be about the smallest end of nothing 
whittled to a point. At the same time, how much would she be 
exposed to Northern aggressions, not such as have hitherto been 
known, aggressions instigated by simple theories, and having their 
limits set by the law, but aggressions incited by both hatred of 
slavery and desire for revenge. In a Northern confederacy, what- 
ever temporary inconveniences she might suffer, her future would 
be brightened. In a short time she would be able to rid herself of 
slavery, and enjoy all the advantages of the other free states. 
Should her sympathies for the South prevent her choosing the 
means necessary for her future prosperity, this would be sickly 



66 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

sentimentality. The cotton states did not shrink from plunging 
her into all the calamities of a war centralized upon her soil, and 
why should she now ask South Carolina, or Georgia, or Virginia 
what should be the course she should pursue? It is evident that 
slavery cannot exist in Maryland for an indefinite time. Whatever 
be the result of the approaching civil war, the time for slavery in 
Maryland is limited. Statistics show that it has been gradually 
decreasing. In fact it will not pay in our state, when we take into 
consideration the fact that there is perhaps no other state from 
which so many slaves run away. Let Maryland prepare for this, 
and she will hold a firm position. Her soil is fertile and impreg- 
nated with mineral wealth, while as a manufacturing state she 
would receive a fresh impetus. Immigration would be encouraged, 
and her soil would thereby rise in value sufficiently to compensate 
her in a short time for all her losses. I think her interests are 
with the Union. She ought to be faithful to it. If the South par- 
tially succeeds, it will hold such an imbecile position as will be a 
warning to all future secessionists. You must not misunderstand 
me; I am as much opposed to black Eepublicanism as ever, but I 
think our duty is to the Union and our own state. You will of 
course perceive great incoherence in these lines. I have written 
just as I thought, in order to give you an idea of what a Marylander 
so far from home thinks. As for it being a galling sight for Balti- 
moreans to see Northern troops infesting their city, permit me to 
say that our townsmen can stand a great deal. Any body of men 
who could so long tolerate the anarchy of " Know-nothingism " 
can also have a little forbearance towards Northern troops. I do 
not pity them in the least. . . . 

On June 22, 1861, he wrote: " The more I see of European cus- 
toms the more I am convinced that we have much more to be proud 
of than the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution." 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 67 

Paris, June 24, 1861. 
Dear Father, 

. . . I am very much engaged at present, and it will perhaps 
not be uninteresting to you to hear how I spend my time. I get 
up generally about seven o'clock A. M., which you will probably 
not consider very late when you hear at what time I go to bed. I 
take breakfast in a cafe in the neighborhood of my room, and am 
at the hospitals from eight to ten. The time from ten until twelve 
I employ in study at my room, which is quite near to the hospitals. 
At twelve, I take a second breakfast, and the time from that hour 
until two I spend at the famous clinic of M. Desmarres for the dis- 
eases of the eye. From two to three I attend a lecture at the Uni- 
versity; from three to four I am again engaged in study in my 
room; between four and five I attend another lecture; and I em- 
ploy the time from then until seven in private study. At seven, I 
go to dinner, after which I take an hour's walk in one of the beau- 
tiful parks which they have here in such abundance. I then gen- 
erally spend an hour in the cafe to read the papers, enjoy the bene- 
fits of French conversation with my acquaintances, and then re- 
turn home; and my books keep me up until a late hour. During 
the last three weeks I have not gotten to bed before one o'clock. 
So you see I am not spending my time in idleness. I am enjoying 
uninterrupted good health, and I derive such great pleasure 
from my studies that I feel I cannot lose a single moment, with the 
exception of those which I set aside for a little recreation. 

Dear Brother Stern, 

. . . Paris is divided into various quarters. I live in the 
Quartier Latin, for the most part inhabited by students and gri- 
settes. You can easily imagine that it is a lively quarter. We will 
spend a day together here. Imagine it to be Sunday and that I am 
quite at your disposal. We get up at an early hour and seek a bar- 



68 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

ber's shop. We first meet a young man with a portfolio under his 
arm, his eyes testifying that he did not spend the night in a most 
satisfied manner. This is a student, more likely returning than 
coming from home. We next hear a rustle of crinoline and silk, we 
look behind us, and find them partly enveloping the figure of a fe- 
male. I say partly, for the low-necked dresses of the Quartier Latin 
would indicate that the necks of women extend much farther than 
is usually believed, while the exposition of ankles would far exceed 
anything you ever beheld at the crossings at Market Space, even 
when the Falls overflowed. This is one of the proudest and appa- 
rently one of the happiest beings in the quarter. She is a grisette. 
We have now reached a barber's shop, very similar to those we see 
at home. You take a seat and are surprised at the person occupying 
the next chair; under an innumerable quantity of ringlets you dis- 
cover the features of a female having her hair dressed. This is 
another heroine of the quarter. 

We shall now take a Parisian breakfast. You may wish to go 
to a cafe, quite a fine place. I prefer a cremerie, which, though 
not quite so elegant, is much cheaper. In the former place your 
coffee, bread, and butter will cost you about twenty cents; in the 
latter, where you will receive substantially the same things, your 
outlay will not exceed six cents. You must not inspect the hands 
of the waiter too closely, however, for if you have not a stomach 
quite as strong as the one with which I am blessed, you may per- 
haps not relish your coffee. You will be in very agreeable company ; 
on one side of you there will be fine broad-cloth, on the other a 
blouse. This is not uncommon here, where equality reigns su- 
preme. . . . You will be surprised at the capacity of the bowl 
containing your coffee, the dimensions of which will nearly equal 
those of an ordinary wash-basin. You will readily agree with me 
that the coffee in Paris surpasses any you have ever tasted. The 
quality will be quite as satisfactory as the quantity. We will now 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 69 

take a little stroll. After -wending our way through the narrow 
streets of the Quartier, whose sidewalks permit only two to walk 
abreast, you will be happy to find yourself on one of the boulevards. 
These are broad streets, with fine trees planted on either side. Here 
you would be able to spend a day quite pleasantly, observing the 
doings of the lively Parisians. Here you notice hundreds of men, 
women, and children vending little articles, such as pens, pencils, 
writing-paper, shoe-strings, fruit, maps of Paris, and the like, each 
endeavoring to out-yell the other in proclaiming the superiority of 
the articles in quality and inexpensiveness. In passing one of the 
public squares, you will see a large crowd collected to witness an 
acrobat performing his wonderful feats in the open air. He assumes 
a supplicating attitude, and asks for only one more sou before at- 
tempting his miraculous tricks. ... In another portion of 
the square you see, mounted on the top of a carriage, a little girl, 
fantastically dressed, beating a drum. This collects a crowd. A 
man with a tremendous moustache stands up in the vehicle, and 
holding a box of salve in his hand, commences a tirade against char- 
latanism, which casts so much unjust suspicion on the intentions of 
the real benefactors of humanity. He assures you that, in thus 
coming before the public, he is animated only by a sincere desire 
to help suffering mankind. He claims to have discovered a sure 
remedy for sprains, coughs, neuralgia, headache, ulcers, and " the 
thousand natural ills which flesh is heir to." You will wonder how 
well the fellow understands his business. I cannot leave you here 
long, else you will begin to think that your system is out of order, 
and in consequence be mulcted in the sum of one or two francs. 
You will behold little squads of people collected in other portions 
of the square, attracted by men exposing the wonders of the elec- 
trical machine, raffling off ginger cake, and exhibiting objects under 
the microscope. 

The fine buildings we shall pass, as well as the show windows, 



70 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

arranged with Parisian taste, will not fail to elicit your admira- 
tion. The churches, palaces, and other public buildings, you will 
agree with me, surpass anything of the kind in our country, with 
the exception, perhaps, of our fine Capitol at Washington. The 
other buildings, however, cannot be compared to the magnificent 
ones on Broadway in New York, Chestnut Street in Philadelphia, 
or West Baltimore Street in Baltimore. After seeing our large 
warehouses at home, one must wonder where people do their large 
business here, for the places where business is done here deserve 
the designation rather of shops than of mercantile establishments. 

People here live quite differently from what they do in our 
country. Every building is used here for both business and dwell- 
ing purposes. Parisians content themselves with a few rooms in 
one of the six or seven stories of their buildings, a story which they 
choose according to their stations and purses. We will examine 
one of these houses together. The first floor is devoted to mercan- 
tile purposes; the second may be likewise, or it may contain the 
apartments of some baron ; in the third you will find a very respect- 
able family occupying a few rooms, too economical to go further 
down, and too proud to go higher up; in the fourth, families who 
have to manage to make both ends meet ; in the fifth you will be as- 
tonished to find how elevated a position honesty occupies in Paris; 
and in the sixth, you will have an example of what is poorer than 
poor. 

Without ascending to the seventh, you will not object to a little 
fresh air. We will therefore take a stroll through the Jardin des 
Tuileries, and the Champs Elysees. We shall pass the Louvre, so 
famous for its paintings, statuary, and antiquities, and the Tuileries, 
which, you know, is the Imperial palace. We will not occupy our- 
selves with these buildings, though they are of great interest, as I 
wish to show you as much of life as is possible in one day. It will 
take us about an hour to walk through the garden of the Tuileries. 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 71 

The garden is a magnificent one, with beautiful statuary, fine foun- 
tains, and large ponds. In consequence there are a great number 
of people attracted here. You will notice thousands of women 
with their caps and with babies on their arms, — these are nurses, — 
numbers of little girls jumping rope, and men and boys playing 
various games of ball. Coming from our Puritanical city, you 
must not be too much surprised to observe priests, even on Sunday, 
watching the game, and not failing at an opportune moment to put 
in their kicks. In another portion of the garden there will be a 
fine military band, performing for the amusement of the jolly 
Parisians. I have, however, heard better music in Germany. All 
the walks are lined with chairs, upon one of which you will take a 
seat, and a woman will come to you for two sous. The chairs are 
supplied by a private company. If you object to this, you can 
choose a bench, if you are able to find one, and you will have your 
seat free. 

As we have no time to lose if we wish to study Parisian life in one 
day, we shall have to proceed further. Passing through the Jardin 
des Tuileries, we arrive at the Champs ~Elysk.es. Here we find the 
most beautiful avenue, ornamented on either side with fine trees. 
We shall meet here a perfect throng of pedestrians and fast horses. 
You will wish to have your horse and buggy to join in the spirited 
" Gee-long." You will feel tired enough when you reach the end 
of this endless chain of avenues. Here you see the " Arch of Tri- 
umph," built in commemoration of French victories. It is a 
beautiful structure, and bears on its vast columns the names of the 
various places where the French flag floated in triumph. . . . 

Eeturning, we must not forget to notice the many gardens, where 

you can both get a fine cup of coffee and hear a fine concert. We 

shall now mount to the top of an omnibus to reach the Closerie, 

which is a fine garden to which students and grisettes and strangers 

6 



72 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

flock in the evening to join in the merry dance. ... It will 
be ten o'clock before I can get you away from here. 

We will now go to the cafe in the Quartier. On the first floor I 
shall meet a few friends and take a cup of coffee with them. If you 
go to the second floor, you will find students and grisettes puffing 
away at their cigars. You inquire what are the attractions of a 
cafe. Here you find all the leading English, French, Italian, Swiss, 
Russian, and Polish papers, and enjoy a game of chess, dominoes, or 
cards. Things are quite different here from what they are in Ger- 
many. If you go to a beer saloon in the North of Germany, you 
have the advantage of hearing good music; but, if you are a 
stranger, you will be prevented by the stiffness of the manners of the 
people from entering into conversation. In the South of Germany, 
people are very clever; but, if you desire to enter into conversation, 
you will have to confine your remarks to the subject of beer. In a 
cafe you meet people from every part of the globe, and you will have 
a little world under your observation. I still have much to say, but 
you see my letter has attained an inordinate length. If you have en- 
joyed the day in Paris, we may take another stroll at some future 
time. . . . 

He remarks in a letter to his betrothed dated July 17, 1861, " I 
find that I have incurred no small amount of displeasure " [from 
his family] " for the free expression of my political sentiments." 

Further on in the same letter he says : " I have no doubt that 
you are very much amused at the manner my mother speaks of 
me. . . I cannot wonder that she speaks of me as if I were only 
a little bit of a boy. Sometimes, when I think of my many engage- 
ments, extensive studies, and, above all, my grave responsibilities, 
and that, despite all, my spirits are about the same as when I played 
marbles on the street, I cannot decide whether I really have ceased 
to be a boy or not." [He was at that time twenty-five years old.] 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 73 

Paris, July 20, 1861. 

Dear Father, 

. . . It is rather fortunate for me that I do not share your 
secessionist sentiments, for in that case I should not be able to budge 
from this place. A few days ago I went to the American consul 
(not minister), to have my passport stamped. On presenting it 
the following dialogue occurred. 

" Where are you from ?" 

" From Baltimore." 

" Are you a secessionist ?" 

" Sir, I am astonished at this question." 

"Why?" 

" I never knew that an American citizen, claiming the protection 
of his country, would have to submit to a catechism as to his po- 
litical sentiments." 

" Our orders are positively to require an oath of allegiance to the 
constitution and government of the United States previous to grant- 
ing any claim on the service of this consulate." 

" Do you follow this rule with the citizens of every state when 
they present their passports to you ? " 

"What makes you ask this question?" 

" Simply because, if this rule applied exclusively to the citizens 
of the Southern states, I should scrupulously avoid any action which 
would be an acknowledgment that my state favored secession." 

" All citizens are treated alike." 

" Being loyal to the Union, I have not the least hesitation, under 
these circumstances, in swearing allegiance to the constitution of 
the United States." 

The oath was administered, my passport handed to me, and we 
parted good friends. . . . 



74 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

After long-continued hard work he writes in his diary, " In order 
to commence my studies with the same energy with which I have 
prosecuted them hitherto, I think it will be advisable to take a 
little recreation." 

On August 6, therefore, he left Paris for Geneva, Lausanne, and 
Berne. From Berne he rode to Thun; "I enjoy the journey," he 
says in the diary, " very much indeed, . . . the country is very 
picturesque; . . . beautiful villages . . . most enchant- 
ing valleys, and towards the close of the journey we come in view 
of the snow-covered mountains of the Bernese Oberland." From 
Thun he " sailed almost the entire length of the lake [to Oberseen 
and Interlaken]. The water is a beautiful blue, and on each side 
we are greeted by the view of the incomparably beautiful Swiss 
cottages." 

On August 12 he set out on foot for Grindelwald, stopping at 
Lauterbrunnen, and then ascended the Faulhorn, the summit of 
which he reached at ten P. M., completely exhausted, having walked 
thirteen hours and covered " thirty-six miles, through valleys and 
mountains." He rose at four the next morning to witness the sun- 
rise. " The scene is sublime, the snow-covered peaks reflecting the 
light. Prom the Faulhorn we have a good view of the whole Bern- 
ese Oberland, its high mountains, green valleys, and fine lakes." 
Thence he proceeded to Scheideck and the Kosenlaui glacier. " The 
glacier is beautiful; the ice is as transparent as the purest crys- 
tal. . . . There are several natural and artificial caves in 
which the roaring torrents streaming from the mountains can 
. . . be seen. . . . The caves are magnificent; the light 
coming through from above assumes a blue hue; the arch of the 
caves resembles the blue vault of the heavens. . . Then we wend 
our way to the Eeichenbach Fall, which is very pretty indeed, or, 
as a young French demoiselle remarked, ' C'est touie beaute!' " He 
proceeded next to the Giessbach, at which he arrived in time for 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 75 

the nightly illumination, " a magnificent spectacle." From Brienz, 
which is not far distant, he took the diligence for the Lake of the 
Four Cantons, and ascended the Eigi at night from Weggis, in order 
again to view the sunrise. " The view is beautiful, even finer than 
from the Faulhorn." Thence he proceeded by way of Lucerne, the 
Lake of Constance, Augsburg, Chemnitz, and Dresden to Prague, 
where he arrived on August 19. He describes his journey in a 
letter dated Prague, August 30, as follows : 

" I cannot find words to express the pleasure I derived from this 
trip. . . In Switzerland I was again in a country where the 
sacred principle of freedom reigns supreme. When I gazed at the 
beautiful snow-covered mountains, the beautiful valleys, the en- 
chanting lakes, the crystal . . . glaciers, I could not wonder 
that they were destined by Providence to be inhabited by a free 
and happy people. In the presence of these majestic . . . 
works of nature it is explainable that the character of the Swiss 
people should be so elevated. . . ." 

He continues : " I heard of the dishonorable defeat of the Federal 
troops at Bull Eun the day before I left Paris. I had intended to 
leave Paris on the same day, but when I read the news my nervous 
system received such a shock that I postponed my departure until 
the following day. With all my devotion to the Union I'd rather 
see it scattered to the winds than see it fought for in that cowardly 
manner. When I received the news I felt more like going home and 
enlisting than anything else." 

In Prague he devoted himself to the diagnosis of diseases of the 
chest under Dr. Peters, and especially to obstetrics under Professor 
Seyfert. 

" The obstetric hospital itself is supplied with abundant material, 
over three thousand births taking place here annually. . . . 



76 Aaron" Friedenwald, M. D. 

Seyfert is a skilful practitioner, . . . but many of his precepts 
appear to me both ridiculous and dangerous. Some believe him to 
be quite a scholar; . . . there is, however, one very important 
qualification of the professor which I unhesitatingly say he lacks — 
I mean gentlemanliness. Not only does he treat his patients with 
the most shameful rudeness, but he does not spare his contempo- 
raries from the most offensive abuse. . . ." [Diary, Septem- 
ber 3]. 

" Dr. Peters is a very amiable gentleman, and I find that, while 
he avoids the Grundlichlceit of the German teachers, he surpasses 
most of them in practical teaching. Take a long walk with him 
after his lecture, and he tells me that I am quite proficient in aus- 
cultation ; when I tell him that I brought all my knowledge in this 
particular branch across the waters, he is astonished to find instruc- 
tion ... so complete in America. . . ." 

" In my leisure hours I read Zschokke's works. I have read nearly 
all of them." [Diary, September 9]. 

Prague, September 30, 1861. 
Dear Brother Moses, 

On my arrival here on the twentieth ult. I expected to find a 
letter in the Post-office; in this, however, I have been disappointed. 

. . . From the accounts that I have been able to gather 
from the various German journals, I am led to fear that the diffi- 
culties at present existing are far from solution, and that the war 
will be more prolonged by far than either of the contending parties 
had any idea of at first. You will excuse me for disregarding the 
warning contained in your last letter, not to write anything with 
regard to politics, inasmuch as you will notice that it is my purpose 
rather to elicit information from you than to force upon you an ex- 
pression of my views. I expect to remain here until the sixth or 
tenth of October, when I shall start for Vienna, where the winter 
session of the University commences on the fifteenth . . . My 






Student Dats in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 77 

short sojourn here has been both pleasantly and profitably spent. 
I have been engaged in the study of midwifery and of the diseases 
of the chest, -for which the hospitals of Prague offer special advan- 
tages. . . . 

Prag, "September 30, 1861. 
Liebe Mutter, 

. . . Wie oft lenken sich meine Gedanken zu Dir. Mil 
welchem Entzucken sehe ich dem Augenblick entgegm, wann ich 
dich wieder umarmen darf. Was fur ein gottliches Vergniigen hast 
Du mir vor einigen Abenden bereitet. Du, liebe Mutter, Tcamst 
mir im Traume vor. Ich war an Deiner Seite, und von Deiner 
mutterlichen ZdrtlichTceit umgeben. Die traurigen Zeiten waren 
voruber, and Du warst wieder bei voller Oesundheit. Du gabst 
mir den besten Bath fur die Zukunft, und indem ich versprach, 
ihm zu folgen, druckte ich einen Euss auf Deine Lippen, — so er- 
wachte ich. Gebe es Gott dass die Wirklichkeit diesen schonen 
Traum nicht nachstehen wird. Ich glaube nicht, dass ich mich 
in meiner Abwesenheit viel gedndert habe, doch bezweifle ich 
nicht, dass Du Gelegenheit finden wirst, ein Wortchen Tachlis 
[nutzlichen Rat] mit mir zu sprechen und freue mich schon jetzt, 
es zu horen." 

On October 7 he left for Vienna. " Our coupe is crowded. 
Opposite me there is a gentleman from Carlsbad who wishes to 
speak English. He has great difficulty. As he seems to prefer for- 
eign languages, I speak French with him." [Diary]. In Vienna 
he lost no time in seeking the University to arrange for courses. 
He took the following: Ophthalmology, Professor Arlt; Topograph- 
ical Anatomy, Professor Hyrtl; Obstetrics, Professor Braun; Der- 
matology, Professor Oppolzer. Of these men Arlt left the deepest 
impression upon my father. The great Viennese ophthalmologist 
stood second only to Graefe in his admiration and regard. He con- 
sidered Arlt the more skilful operator ; Grsef e, the greater genius. 



78 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Vienna, October 23,. 1861. 
Dear Father, 

I left Prague on the 7th and arrived here after a twelve hours' 
ride. . . . Already on the day of my arrival here I engaged a 
room in the neighborhood of the hospital, and in a few days I was 
prepared to attend the lectures, which had then just commenced. 
I am quite comfortably fixed here. . . . Vienna is certainly a 
very fine place, and its animated appearance reminds me strongly 
of Paris. The people are much more sociable here than in the 
North of Germany, but I find them considerably less refined. They 
speak horrible German, very similar to the Bavarian dialect. To 
my great surprise, I noticed that several of the professors cling to 
this dialect. The professors here generally present a slovenly ap- 
pearance, which contrasts strongly with the dignified exterior of the 
professors in Berlin, Paris, and in our own country. The medical 
school of Vienna justly bears the reputation of being the first in 
the world. Its advantages consist not only in the size of its hospital 
and in the material over which it has command, but in the practical 
manner in which it imparts its instruction ; in the latter particular 
it has an advantage over the Berlin and Paris schools. . . . 

Vienna, October 22, 1861. 
Dear Brother Stern, 

. . . I am convinced that a reconciliation can never again 
take place now between the two sections of our country, and that 
sooner or later a separation will take place, after more or less blood- 
shed; and therefore I look upon the war with deep sorrow. The 
expediency of the continuance of the war cannot, in my opinion, 
be based upon the regaining of the lost states, but must rest in 
holding the doubtful ones, I mean Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri, 
Western Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Should these 
states remain in the Union, they will learn, among other things, the 
great advantage of being an integral part of a confederation which 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 79 

is based upon the great doctrine of indivisibility. A government 
resting upon this foundation can work out its happiness and pros- 
perity harmoniously. Very different is it with a confederation 
whose very organization renders its future integrity doubtful, to 
say the least. You must not suppose that I entertain any antipathy 
to the Southern states. I regard their policy as suicidal, and 
therefore I pity them from the bottom of my heart. . . . 

Vienna, October 22, 1861. 
Dear Brother Joseph, 

. . . That the Americans are better than the people of other 
nations rests solely upon conceit. The prosperity with which they 
were blessed was not owing to their individual superiority, but to 
accidental circumstances. They ascribed their happiness to their 
own merits, however, and were thus strengthened in their conceit. 
The troubles with which they are now overwhelmed may serve as a 
valuable lesson in the future, and the war may in this manner be 
really beneficial. There was too much " rottenness in Denmark " 
to hope that things would go on harmoniously. Heretofore the af- 
fairs of government were left in the hands of those who recognized 
in it nothing. . . . but an institution offering an excellent and 
profitable means for the exercise of rascality. The so-called good 
people were satisfied to relish the milk and honey of the land in 
apathy, so that at last it was regarded as a wonderful phenomenon 
to see an honorable man in office. We in Baltimore had a minia- 
ture picture from which we could well study what was really meant 
by universal suffrage in the whole country. As things cannot be 
perfect in our corrupt world, we must be satisfied with having a 
few less evils than other countries. If you knew how things were 
conducted in Austria you would not find our government quite so 
bad. It is a mistaken notion which prevails in our country that a 
republic must necessarily be good and a monarchy bad. . . . 



80 Aaron Eriedenwald, M. D. 

Under date of November 14, 1861, he writes as follows : " I have 
become a stronger Unionist than ever. ... I have no fear for 
the ultimate success of the government, if it make proper use of the 
forces at its command. . . ." 

Vienna, November 17, 1861. 
Dear Brother Joseph, 

. . . From a professional point of view I derive more pleasure 
from my sojourn in Vienna than from any other place that I have 
visited. The advantages which the schools of Vienna offer are im- 
mense. Its hospital is the largest that I have yet seen, constantly 
having over two thousand patients, who furnish science with the 
means of studying all the " thousand ills that flesh is heir to." 
While I am anxious to learn all that I can in every branch of science, 
and while I let no opportunity escape me whereby I can qualify my- 
self for the active duties of my profession, I am devoting myself 
particularly to the study of the diseases of the eye, which I com- 
menced under the renowned von Graefe in Berlin, and am now con- 
tinuing, under Professor Arlt of this city. Partly from the fact 
that this branch has been little cultivated in our country, and partly 
from its being my favorite study, I should like, if possible, to make 
it my specialty at some future day. In the meantime I shall not 
lose sight of the fact that I must commence as a general practitioner, 
and that it is my duty to render myself qualified for all my duties 
in that capacity. 

Vienna is certainly a very interesting city. Its inhabitants pre- 
sent a singularly motley appearance. One finds people here from 
almost every part of Europe. The conversation which I sometimes 
hear in the lecture rooms puts me in mind of the building of the 
tower of Babel. Here one hears German in its various dialects, 
Hungarian, Bohemian, Slavonian, Polish, Eussian, French, Eng- 
lish, Italian, Greek, Swedish, Dutch and many other lan- 
guages. . . . 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 81 

The Viennese are a peculiar sort of people, good natured enough, 
to be -sure, but stupid; and they do not come up by far to the Ger- 
man standard of refinement. A fact which has particularly struck 
me is that the distinct line of demarcation existing between the 
classes of North Germany, which will enable one to determine at a 
glance whether persons with whom you come in contact belong to 
the educated or to the benighted classes of society, is entirely want- 
ing here. The scholar adheres to the Viennese dialect with the 
same tenacity that the besotted cab-driver does, and the shirt of the 
former is hardly cleaner than that of the latter. An American 
friend of mine here maintains that he can distinguish the various 
nationalities by the degree of cleanliness of their shirts. He con- 
tends that when a person appears in a clean shirt, he must be either 
an American or an Englishman, while the other nationalities of 
Europe satisfy themselves with a more limited indulgence in clean 
linen ; as for the Wiener, he thinks it is the least pressing of all his 
wants. Though he exaggerates, there is nevertheless much truth 
in what he says. . . . 

The civility which one observes here is strongly impregnated 
with servility. The lower classes express their gratitude by kissing 
the hand, or by simply saying, " Kuss die Hand." ... It 
would be very uncivil if he said, "Ich danke." They address one 
as " Gnadiger Herr," " Eure Gnaden," " Bitte unterth'dnigst," and 
the like. [Diary]. 

Vienna, December 5, 1861. 
Dear Brother Moses, 

. . . Though I cannot find the least justification for the 
Southern cause, I find it quite natural that the Southerners should 
display the intense enthusiasm which you describe in fighting the 
Federal forces. This is not the first time in the world's history that 
passion has proven stronger than good sense. . . . My opinions 
on the present troubles have not changed in the least, and I still 



82 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

hope for the restoration of the Union. It would occupy too much 
space if I attempted to give you reasons for my views, and as they 
would perhaps not prove palatable to you, I can dispense with it 
the more readily. 

Vienna, December 5, 1861. 
Dear Brother Stern, 

. . . The [Trent] affair has produced quite a commotion in 
the circle of my American friends, for you can readily understand 
that it will affect us individually. In case of war our harbors will 
probably be blockaded, and those who have not a snug sum on hand 
will have to starve here, inasmuch as they will not be able to receive 
remittances from home, or they will have to leave here precipitately 
if they wish to reach home at all, while others fear that they will 
be cut off too long . . . from communication with their 
friends. I do not believe that our government will provoke a war 
with England; in any event I am not frightened for myself, inas- 
much as I have plenty of money on hand ; besides, we shall all have 
time to decide when the American minister at London receives his 
passport. In case England chooses to satisfy her revenge merely 
by recognizing the Southern Confederacy, it will not affect us indi- 
vidually at all. I should not like to be forced to leave before the 
winter session, which lasts till some time in April, has ended ; but 
after that time I can be ready at any moment. . . . 

During his stay in the large cities in Europe he often mentions 
his visits to the opera, which afforded him great pleasure. He was a 
lover of music, and had a good ear. He was especially fond of 
Jewish melodies, and, like his father, could sing them well. 

In the spring of 1862 he took lessons in Italian for about two 
months, in order to prepare himself for a short trip to Italy." The 

3 Thirty-six years later, in a letter dated Milan, July 11, 1898, he 
writes: "I can read the accounts [of the war] in the Italian papers 
pretty well. It would probably amuse you to hear me translating the 
news to mamma." 



Student Days in Paris, Prague, and Vienna. 83 

winter semester in Vienna ended in the latter part of April, and he 
proceeded to Venice, where he spent several days, thence going on to 
Padua, Verona, Turin, and Milan. Then journeying to England 
by way of Paris, he arrived in London about May 16. Here he re- 
mained a month, spending almost all of his time in the hospitals, 
but finding time to visit the Exposition then in progress. On June 
18 he sailed for home, landing at New York early in July. He re- 
turned to Baltimore, and immediately began the practice of the pro- 
fession for which he had so thoroughly prepared himself. 



CHAPTER V. 

Practice and Personality. 

At the time of my father's return to Baltimore, in July, 1862, 
there were in the city no physicians specially trained in the treat- 
ment of diseases of the eye. Dr. George Frick, a well-known oph- 
thalmologist, had left the city about twenty years before, and had 
found no successors. No special instruction in ophthalmology was 
given at the University of Maryland at that period, and my father, 
who had enjoyed the greatest advantages then open to the medical 
profession to attain proficiency in that subject, naturally thought of 
becoming an eye specialist. Conditions at that time, and especially 
the breadth of his interest in medical science, however, prevented 
him from limiting his sphere of activity. He opened an office at 
the house of his parents, 111 (now 1111) East Baltimore Street, 
as a general practitioner, though during the whole of his career he 
made a specialty of ophthalmology. The continuance of his studies 
occupied the abundant leisure which he had at that time. He 
worked chiefly upon the eye, getting practice by operating upon 
the eyes of animals, especially of rabbits. The following letter gives 
an idea of his circumstances at this time : 

Baltimore, September 5, 1862. 
. . . Sometimes I get quite out of patience on account of not 
having more to do. I was thinking of trying to get a position in 
one of the military hospitals here; but, on maturer reflection, I 
have given up the idea, for I should be compelled to neglect the 
practice that I shall get : besides, the advantages of such a position 
could be only temporary. . . . 



AARON FRIEDENWALD 
1863 






ajAwi/iaaaifn hofiaa 



•,..V.i 






' 



Practice and Personality. 85 

As this extract indicates, the war was uppermost in the public 
mind at that day. An idea of the state of Baltimore during the 
eventful month of September, 1862, may be gathered from the fol- 
lowing excerpts from letters. 

Baltimore, September 5, 1862. 
. . . There is a rumor in town to-day that the rebels have in- 
vaded Maryland, and there is great excitement here in conse- 
quence. . . . 

Baltimore, September 8, 1862. 
. . . It is really humiliating to listen to the exultation of the 
Southern sympathisers. There has been considerable excitement 
since the Eebels occupied Frederick. . . . 

He had become more and more attached to the Eepublican party, 
the local members of which at that time constituted an unpopular 
minority, especially among my father's associates. 

Baltimore, September 9, 1862. 
. . . These are miserable times here now. The invader is 
upon us, and still we hear nothing publicly of his approach. The 
news offices are compelled to keep their bulletin-boards within doors 
to prevent excitement on the street. When the news came that the 
rebels had taken possession of Frederick, there was considerable of a 
fight before the " Clipper " office. You know that the rowdy faction 
of the Know-nothing party has attached itself to the Union party 
here, and, instead of arming and meeting the foe as they should, 
they threaten to wreak their vengeance on the secessionists here. 
They are, I believe, the most cowardly set on the face of the earth. 
The papers tell us nothing in regard to the movements made by the 
government to intercept Jackson's march, but I have learned from 
a gentleman from Washington that McClellan and Burnside started 



86 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

from Washington on Sunday with over fifty thousand men. I am 
really getting discouraged at the manner in which the war has been 
managed, and I am beginning to think it would be more expedient 
to give up to the Southerners than to slaughter so many thousands 
uselessly. In spite of the good cause the North is fighting for and 
the many thousands rushing under arms to support that cause, and 
all the resources which the Union can command, the South must 
triumph if ... a little brains is not sent to Washington and 
to the heads of the armies very soon. . . . 

Somewhat later a temporary hospital for the wounded soldiers, 
both Union and Confederate, who passed through Baltimore, was 
opened on Central Avenue, and my father gave up to it much of 
his time, visiting the injured day and night. 

On June 14, 1863, he was married to Miss Bamberger, his en- 
gagement to whom has been mentioned. There was a quiet home 
wedding at the house of the bride's parents, on North Eutaw Street, 
near Lexington. After the ceremony, which was performed by the 
Beverend Joseph Leucht, husband and wife went immediately to 
their modest home, then numbered 65 East Fayette Street, between 
Exeter and East Streets. 

A few months after the wedding my father was placed under 
arrest on the charge of having run the blockade and aided the 
South. The arrest was either a mistake or a ruse, as one of his 
brothers was at that time serving in the Confederate army. My 
father spent one night in a cell in the " Slaves' Prison," a building 
at the corner of Eutaw and Camden Streets, used at one time for 
the confinement of negroes. The next morning he was brought 
before Colonel Fish, then in command, a soldier reputed to be an 
unscrupulous scoundrel, who tried to browbeat him into incriminat- 
ing his brother. 

My father faced him coolly and- fearlessly, indignantly refusing 
to answer any questions concerning his brother's affairs with the 






Practice and Personality. 87 

retort, " Do you want me to testify against my brother ?" He ob- 
tained bis discharge the same day through the influence of friends, 
who proved that he was innocent of the charges against him and 
was, moreover, a stanch Union man. The trouble and anxiety 
this incident occasioned the young wife can readily be imagined. 

Shortly after this time my mother was further distressed by sev- 
eral robberies, which so disturbed her that she became quite ill. As 
a result, the house on East Fayette Street was given up, and the 
young couple went to live for a time with my mother's parents, 
while my father again opened his office at his father's house. He 
soon set about finding another house, and a few months later pur- 
chased a home at what was then 126 (now 1208) East Baltimore 
Street. 

Not long after he writes : 

Baltimore, September 23, 1864. 
Dear Brothers Isaac and Moses, 

I have the pleasure of informing you that Bertha was delivered 
of a fine boy on Wednesday morning (September 21). . . . 
The little fellow will be named after our grandfather (Harry), and 
I hope he will be spared us to do honor to the name. 

Four other children, all sons, were born: Julius, on December 
20, 1866; Bernard Daniel, on September 27, 1870 (died June 3, 
1893) ; Norman, on November 11, 1873 ; and Edgar Bar, on Novem- 
ber 20, 1879. 

My father's practice rapidly increased, and he was kept busy 
day and night. On returning from a visit to a patient one night 
he came to a mound of earth, and, being very agile, instead of 
walking round it he leaped over it. Unfortunately, he fell into a 
deep trench hidden on the other side of the pile, injuring his side 
badly. He made light of the pain, which lasted some time, and 
not until several years later was it discovered that he had suffered a 
fracture of the ribs. 
7 



88 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

His practice continued steadily to improve, Dr. N. R. Smith, 
Dr. Christopher Johnston, and many other professional friends 
referring eye cases to him. Finally he determined to move up-town, 
selling his house and purchasing another at 88 (later 310) North 
Eutaw Street. He took possession of this house in July, 1868, and 
it continued to be his home for the remaining thirty-four years of 
his life. 

About this time a serious outbreak of small-pox occurred in Bal- 
timore, and a small temporary hospital for Jewish sufferers was 
fitted up on Dallas Street by a few charitable people. At this hos- 
pital my father was the only physician in attendance, gratuitously 
devoting his services for several months to this arduous and disa- 
greeable work. His stern sense of duty alone kept him at his 
post. His whole professional life, indeed, was characterized by 
disregard of danger whenever the welfare of his patients was at 
stake. On one occasion his friend, Dr. Augustus F. Erich, came 
to his home specially to remonstrate with him for applying his 
head to the chest of a patient who was suffering with cholera. 
" Remember," said Erich, " that you have a family ! " The warn- 
ing was needful, for he had already suffered severely from blood- 
poisoning due to infection of his finger. 

A busy man, he took no vacation whatever for many years. 
Summer and winter he was at his post, day and night, and never 
did I hear him complain of overwork or weariness. He would usu- 
ally remain in his office until ten or half after ten; he would then 
drive out to see his patients and, later on, to spend some time at 
the College of Physicians and Surgeons. He was most conscien- 
tious in keeping appointments, and was never late at a consultation. 

During the lifetime of his father and mother he never failed to 
stop daily at the old home, usually about noon, to inquire after 
their health. His relations with his wife's parents were equally 
close, and a day rarely passed without his seeing them. He was 
particularly attached to his mother-in-law. She was a dear, good 




HOME, 310 NORTH EUTAW STREET 



. 

















was 

it 

i 

by 



'■ears. 






T33HT8 WATU3 HTflOI/l 0f£ .3MOH 



During the lifetime of 

St0] 



was 

good 



Practice and Personality. 89 

woman, and he loved her tenderly, while she thought no one was 
so nearly perfect as her son-in-law. 

He would return home about two for the mid-day meal, after 
which, if possible, he would take a nap, which rarely lasted longer 
than a few minutes, and as soon as he was called he would 
be wide awake. He enjoyed his naps best when there were a num- 
ber of persons in the room talking, and neither conversation nor 
the noisy play of the children would disturb him. He would then 
see patients in his office until about four or half after four, after 
which he would make another round of professional visits. My 
mother usually accompanied him on these afternoon drives. She 
would read while he was attending his patients, and while they 
were driving about she would tell him what she had read that 
was of interest. 

On the long summer afternoons when his work was done he would 
often enjoy a drive with his wife and family in the country or in 
the park, and nothing could exceed the pleasure he took in these 
drives. He was extremely fond of wild flowers, enjoying their 
beauty with the pleasure of a true lover of nature. He never tired 
of attractive landscapes, no matter how often he had seen them. 
He would halt his horse on Prospect Hill in Druid Hill Park day 
after day and year after year, to point out some part of the scene 
which appealed to him. His delight in nature was a reflection of 
his deeply religious spirit, which beheld in the " honour and 
majesty " of this world only the clothing of Him who " stretcheth 
out the heavens like a curtain." 

The following letter shows his love of nature, which has already 
appeared in his descriptions of scenes in Switzerland. This letter 
was addressed to his brother Moses, who had been seriously ill for 
some time, and was then traveling in Europe for his health. Moses 
Friedenwald was a great sufferer during the remainder of his life, 
and many references to his illness occur in later letters. He died on 
August 13, 1889. 



90 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Baltimore, January 15, 1877. 
It was a great satisfaction for me to see by letters received from 
you, that you, dear Moses, are again able to use the pen, and are 
not altogether at the mercy of your amanuensis. This is not in- 
tended as any disrespect to you, dear Jane. . . . It is not an 
unusual phenomenon that a married man is not at all times per- 
mitted to speak for himself, but it is against all rules that he 
should not write for himself if he is able to do so. We have there- 
fore two reasons to rejoice in receiving tidings from you, dear 
Moses, in your own handwriting, for in the first place you are in 
full enjoyment of your prerogative, and, more satisfactory still, 
you have the physical strength to make use of it. Keep on, dear 
fellow, to get stronger. . . . Your wonderful feats of pedes- 
trianism have filled me with the pleasant anticipation of not being 
so dreadfully pitied for jaunts that I am forced to make afoot on 
Saturdays, and open the prospect of being supplied when you re- 
turn with the very best company on these occasions. I promise 
you in advance to pick out the softest stone steps that I can find for 
you to sit on while I visit my patients. To afford our fondness for 
pleasant walks wider . . . scope, I have already planned that 
when we . . . meet again in Druid Hill Park as in pleasant 
days gone by, we shall tie our horses near Swan Lake, allow Jane 
and Bertha to amuse themselves under the beautiful trees on the 
hill and . . . stroll through those romantic recesses where 
only those can be admitted who can afford to walk, and when we 
have seen everything, and especially what no one else has seen, we 
will return to the hill and report to the mothers and their children 
our adventures, which, I hope, will prove so interesting that they 
will be communicated as pleasant traditions to our great-great- 
grandchildren. I have a great temptation to dwell upon pleasant 
recollections of the past connected with Druid Hill Park, and to 
peep at the beautiful prospects which appear to us in the future. 



Practice and .Personality. 91 

The cloud is beginning to fade away, and is gradually making way 
for the vivifying sunshine, and now as you are snugly seated around 
the fire at Hamburg, and lamenting that the winter ... is 
especially severe, turn your thoughts to . . . the summers that 
you will again enjoy with us at our loved Druid Hill Park, and I 
am sure a warm glow will animate you, that even the winter of 
Hamburg will not be able to chill. I hope you will be pleased with 
your trip to Hamburg; the friends that you will meet there will 
prevent you from feeling that you are strangers. I know how to 
appreciate German hospitality. It is genuine and not only pleases 
for the moment that it is lavished upon one, but fills the distant 
future with fondest recollections. 

The remainder of this letter touches upon a controversy concern- 
ing a minister against whom the charge of having apostatized be- 
fore he arrived here had been made. The Jewish community of 
Baltimore was much wrought up over the matter, taking sides with 
great -feeling. 

. . . Now for a little news. There has been a grand recon- 
ciliation on the summit of Mt. Sinai. You know that twenty-two 
members went down as seceders, and the others came near going 
up entirely. It came to pass that a great deal of thunder was 
heard, and fire and smoke were spoken of, and men became afraid. 
The twenty-two felt the enthusiasm of those engaged in a rightful 
cause, and the thirty-six found that the thunder and lightning and 
the fire and smoke did not come from Mt. Sinai of old, but from 
themselves, and they opened their eyes, which had been stricken 
with blindness, and they beheld in their Eabbi, Dr. Jacob Meyer, 
a monster even more hideous than others had painted him, and 
they stretched forth their arms, saying " Brethren, return to our 
embrace; we knew not what we did." But the twenty-two heark- 



92 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

ened not unto them, and the thirty-six, clothed in sackcloth and 
ashes, again approached those offended brothers, and they spake 
unto them, saying, " We will undo all we have done, and all amends 
that you will command us to make we will willingly make. For- 
give us this one time, and again enter the bond of brotherhood." 
The hatchet was buried. 

Last Saturday Dr. delivered a sample sermon in Ger- 
man, and on Sunday he repeated the dose in English which was 
published in to-day's American, and which you can read yourself. 
If you can find out what he means, you understand complicated 
English better than I do. I think the candidate has a very good 
chance of becoming the spiritual purveyor of the material wants of 

the Congregation. I write this as I know it will be a great 

relief to you to know the congregation is in safe hands. 

Thank God, that I have not been infected with that dangerous 
spirit of the age, which questions His existence. He who in His 
goodness has shielded me from the pernicious influence of the small- 
pox and cholera and yellow fever and other pestilences, has shielded 
me from this greater plague. If one is threatened with being pos- 
sessed by this dreadful form of skepticism, he will easily be cured 

of it if he takes into consideration that the Congregation 

could satisfactorily dispose of the question adversely to the existence 
of a personal God in about twenty-four hours, when the combined 
intelligence of the most intelligent congregation in the city required 
nearly a year to discover whether Dr. Jacob Meyer was Jacob 
or Jacob's brother. 

Heine, in his more sober moments, said that, when the learned 
spoke of atheism in language such that, while seated around the 
table, they were not understood by their attendants, it had some 
fascination, but when every shoemaker's and tailor's apprentice 
talked atheism, then atheism was tainted by the smell of Lim- 
burger cheese and shoemaker's wax, and therefore became dis- 



AARON FRIEDENWALD 
About 1877 



id all am 

was 
good 



CUAW^BaBIFH l/IOFIAA 

■ • in Ian-. 
table, they were not und 

- 

of Ldm- 



Practice and Personality. 93 

gusting. Atheism, materialism, rationalism, and the like, thus be- 
came the fashion, and fashion is inexorable while it holds its sway. 
It will go out of fashion, and the same folks who have now laid 
religion aside will again trade in it largely. There was once upon 
a time a man in Boston, who went to a different church every Sun- 
day for many years, until finally he became a constant attendant at 
one church. A friend who had observed his former migrations ex- 
pressed his astonishment, and inquired the cause of this change. 
He replied, " The Eeverend Mr. Smith has fascinated me very 
much, for I have now listened to him for years, and have not heard 
him mention religion or politics once." To avoid a similar repu- 
tation, having said as much about religion as is allowable in one 
letter, I will say a word on the political confusion in this com- 
munity. . . . 

Eeferences to his religious views have been made in the earlier 
letters, and others will appear in later letters and in his addresses. 
It will not be out of place, however, at this point to dwell a moment 
upon this subject. As we have seen, my father was brought up in 
accordance with the traditions of Orthodox Judaism, and he re- 
mained a consistent observer of the ceremonial as well as of the 
spiritual side of his religion. He was a regular attendant at the 
services of the synagogue, and took a deep interest in the welfare 
of the congregations with which he was connected. He was one of 
the founders and an officer of the Shearith Israel congregation, 
and later joined the Chizuk Emoonah congregation, which his 
father had been chiefly instrumental in organizing, and in 1892, at 
the earnest desire of his father, succeeded him as president. He 
filled this position until his death, and it was during his incum- 
bency that the congregation removed from the synagogue on Lloyd 
Street to its present edifice at the corner of McCulloh and Mosher 
Streets. At a celebration held on October 20, 1901, in honor of 



94 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

the twenty-fifth anniversary of the connection of Keverend Dr. 
Henry W. Schneeberger with the congregation as its Eabbi, my 
father delivered an address, in the course of which he said : " Faith 
has the inherent quality of reproduction. It sinks its roots deep 
into the human soul; it grows upward and upward; its branches 
spread; and, with its leaves, which remain ever green and drink 
in the heaven-born light, [it] forms a canopy which offers protec- 
tion and safety, and finally [it] bears the fruit, '7i na rijm, ' And 
thou shalt know the Lord.' " 

My father's interest in Judaism was profound and intelligent. 
He had a well-stocked library of books on Jewish subjects, of 
which he made good use. He was especially well-informed on all 
those Jewish topics which have a medical bearing, and wrote a vig- 
orous defense of the Jewish method of slaughtering, taking an 
original point of view in emphasizing its humanitarian influence 
upon the Jews themselves. This article was published in the " Jew- 
ish Exponent " of September 20, 1901. He was requested to write 
for the " Jewish Encyclopedia " the article upon the medical as- 
pect of circumcision, and delivered at Gratz College, in Philadel- 
phia, on January 20, 1896, a lecture entitled " Jewish Physicians 
and the Contributions of the Jews to the Science of Medicine," 
which was printed in the first number of the Publications of the 
College. He was interested from his earliest years in the study of 
Hebrew, and attained sufficient command of the " Holy Tongue " 
to read a Hebrew paper or a chapter in the Bible with ease. A 
Hebrew book, usually a copy of the Psalms, always lay upon his 
desk, to be taken up whenever occasion offered. He could compose, 
and occasionally wrote a letter in Hebrew. On one occasion 
he received a copy of a Hebrew work, printed in Jerusalem, 
which was dedicated to him in terms of the most fulsome flattery. 
Though sincerely interested in the welfare of the Jews of Palestine, 
and a liberal contributor in their behalf, he deeply resented anything 



Practice and Personality. 95 

like humbug, especially when it wore the cloak of religion, and he 
returned the book with a Hebrew reply, saying, " I should feel 
ashamed to aid those who resort to such degrading means as you 
have done. ... I return the book with the warning to stop 
this business, otherwise I will find means to let the world know what 
you have sent out from Zion, and what is the value of the words 
you speak from Jerusalem." 

In describing his visit to the school in Jaffa maintained by the 
Russian Choveve Zion, he wrote, in a letter dated May 10, 1898, 
" I was astonished ... to find how well I could understand 
[the children], and a little sojourn here would soon enable me to 
speak Hebrew sufficiently to feel at home with those who speak so 
much Hebrew here." 

He frequently attended banquets at which he ate nothing, be- 
cause of his rigid adherence to the Jewish dietary laws. This cir- 
cumstance did not lessen his enjoyment, however, for he was al- 
ways in the best of humor on these occasions ; but when he attended 
Jewish banquets at which the dietary laws were not properly ob- 
served it distressed him greatly, as the following letter shows. 

Baltimore, November 21, 1899. 
To the President and Board op Directors 

of the Hebrew Benevolent Society, 
Gentlemen, — A short time before the annual banquet of the He- 
brew Benevolent Society in 1898 I called the attention of a promi- 
nent member of your board to the fact that due regard was not 
[paid] to the Jewish dietary laws in getting up the supper. It was 
claimed that all arrangements had already been made. To my 
great mortification I found that the same disregard characterized 
the banquet of the present year, and I therefore present the matter 
before your honorable body for your serious consideration. I have 
been an attendant at these festivals for over forty years, almost un- 



96 Aaeon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

interruptedly, and I hope I am not presuming too much in re- 
questing you to see to it that the Jewish law and those who observe 
it will on these occasions in the future receive due respect. . . . 

Nothing touched him more deeply than misunderstandings or 
aspersions of Judaism or the setting of Jewish institutions and 
particularly of the Jewish Scriptures in an unfavorable light. The 
following extract is taken from a letter he wrote to Professor H. H. 
Boyesen, who had delivered in Baltimore a lecture upon Scandina- 
vian literature, in the course of which he made some remarks my 
father thought not quite fair to the Old Testament. This letter, 
though breathing his tolerance of other religions, maintains a vig- 
orous Jewish attitude. 

. . . Permit me to say that the Old Testament in compari- 
son with the New does not fall short in the lessons which it 
teaches. . . . Much of the advancement of civilization claimed 
for Christianity has been due to other influences and there have 
been periods when what was called Christianity by its ardent ex- 
pounders has retarded the world's progress. But Christianity has 
developed into something better than it was, and it will continue to 
improve, and so will other religions. The Ibsens will rise from 
reading either Testament and set men against each other; while the 
Bjornsons and the Boyesens, under the same influence, will unite 
the hearts of men for their mutual elevation. . . . 

A sympathetic reply was received, in which Professor Boyesen 
disclaimed any intention of reflecting upon the Old Testament. 

His bold and original way of thinking on Jewish subjects is fur- 
ther illustrated by the following account. 

Baltimobe, December 22, 1884. 
I have just returned from a Shakespearian reading which was 
given at the Johns Hopkins University. The subject was " Shy- 



Practice and Personality. 97 

lock;" and Professor Bell, the reader. He commenced by depre- 
cating the spirit of hatred of the Jew that prevailed at the time of 
Shakespeare, and recognized that with all the hideousness with 
which Shylock was portrayed it could not be denied that great in- 
justice was done him. 

He read beautifully, and in his interpretation did not shear Shy- 
lock of the manly spirit that Shakespeare could not refrain from 
awarding him. And still I must confess it was not an unclouded 
6njoyment, for every Jew must feel instinctively that, notwithstand- 
ing the great literary merit the play unquestionably possesses, with 
its dramatic effects and its portrayal of human passions, the fact 
still remains that it has immeasurably injured our race, for Shy- 
lock at his worst has been regarded as representing the true Jew; 
and even in our enlightened age every Jew attending this play must 
feel that the smouldering embers of the ancient hatred of us are 
kindled to some degree at least, if that hatred does not rage so 
fiercely as it was wont to do. 

If we as Jews could see the same play, with Shylock personating 
a Mohammedan, we should be better able to appreciate the keen 
criticism of Heine, who recognizes in him the only character in the 
play who exhibits any manliness at all. We should realize more 
fully that Shakespeare thoroughly knew how this manly spirit, 
spurned and humiliated at every turn in life, with the tradition of 
persecution in his mind, with the grief of a great domestic be- 
reavement caused by his enemies rankling in his heart, would at 
last break loose from every restraint, and give full scope to an im- 
placable, uncompromising hatred. But when we see Shylock as a 
Jew we feel that Shakespeare, when he described him, must have 
been somewhat in the same state of mind as when he travelled to 
Bohemia by sea. We feel that he did not know the Jew, and we 
have a right to think so, since we can point to the fact that history 
has never revealed such a Jew. 



98 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

We may readily forgive him this injustice, as it evidently pro- 
ceeded from ignorance of the Jewish character, and not from a de- 
sire to vilify it; for he did not attempt to conceal the persecutions 
Shylock had suffered. He shows them exactly as they were, just as 
they appear upon almost every page of history, just as we have seen 
them. 

We could, perhaps, give our Christian friends a better idea of 
what we mean in this connection, if we had them imagine the play 
translated into Arabic, with Shylock as a Mohammedan, and played 
in Constantinople. I hardly think that their applause at Shylock's 
eventual discomfiture would then be quite as pronounced as it usu- 
ally is. Not only would they be somewhat fearful of their safety, 
but they would not rest until they secured the intervention of the 
foreign powers to have the play interdicted, for they would allege 
that the villainous Venetians did not represent the Christian 
spirit. . . . 

While maintaining such positive views upon religions as have 
been set forth, he was intensely interested in every advance of 
science, especially of the physical and biological sciences, and 
encouraged his sons to pursue these studies. He spoke with 
profound respect of the leaders of modern science, and in particular 
of Huxley, whose address at the opening of the Johns Hopkins Uni- 
versity he greatly enjoyed. He deprecated only what he considered 
the unfairness of modern thinkers in their opposition to religion. 

He was a sincere lover of art, which he thought had reached its 
highest development in the sculpture and architecture of the Greeks ; 
he was a devoted student of science, which he considered the great- 
est contribution to civilization made by the moderns; and he was a 
faithful adherent of religion, which he was firmly convinced had 
attained its noblest expression in the inspired words of the Hebrew 
prophets. For him there was no conflict between science and re- 
ligion; he felt sure, as he often said, that, with the progress of 



Practice and Personality. 99 

science and the increase of our knowledge of the laws of nature, the 
world would recognize nature and its laws as the work of that 
Deity whose unity, eternity, and omnipotence the prophets of Israel 
had taught humanity. 

My father led the quiet and uneventful life of a busy physician 
and found his chief diversion in the pleasures of family life. The 
trusted friend and counselor of his numerous relatives, he found his 
closest intimates in the members of his household. The interest he 
took in the schooling of his children appeared in his daily inquiries 
as to their progress ; and, as they grew up, disparity in age did not 
prevent him from making the relation of father and son one of 
comradeship on a footing of perfect equality. His tender and af- 
fectionate relations with his wife, his children, and his grandchil- 
dren were such, indeed, as have made the Jewish home a proverb. 
He was interested in all the little happenings of the home, and 
derived enjoyment from incidents which might have annoyed other 
men, as is seen in the following letter : 

Baltimore, August 17, 1882. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . Edgar has been very well, but quite mischievous. Yes- 
terday afternoon, while mamma was asleep, he got out of his cradle, 
took down the band-box containing mamma's new bonnet, and sub- 
jected it to quite a post-mortem examination. I was asleep at the 
time, and was aroused by a terrible shriek; ... it seemed to 
me I was hearing Shakespeare recited, for I caught the phrase, 
" That thou com'st in such a questionable shape." I got up and 
found mamma looking for the pieces, and collecting the plucked 
grapes that had been strewn in all directions. " But there's a 
divimty that shapes our ends, rough hew them how we will;" of 
this I became convinced, for, after spending considerable time in 
remodeling the debris, the thing finally assumed again the shape 
of a bonnet. . . . 

LCFC. 



100 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

In his younger days he was fond of fishing, but later he rarely in- 
dulged in that sport. He was for many years a heavy smoker, in 
spite of the fact that his wife had a great aversion to the smell of 
tobacco, so that he never smoked in her presence. When about 
thirty years old, he witnessed the severe trial undergone by an ac- 
quaintance of his who was compelled to give up the use of tobacco. 
The distressing picture impressed him so deeply that he determined 
to give up smoking, and he never touched a cigar again. This ex- 
perience was in striking contrast to that of his father. As a result 
of his great age, Jonas Priedenwald, towards the close of his life, 
suffered with failure of vision, for which science affords no relief. 
My father went to New York to consult with Dr. Knapp, a friend 
of his, concerning the case, and had the well-known specialist ex- 
amine my grandfather's eyes. Knapp, on learning that the patient 
was an inveterate smoker, advised him to stop using tobacco. He 
did so for two days, at the end of which time, finding that his sight 
did not improve, he returned to his old habits, and clung to them 
till his last day. 

As has been mentioned, my father took no vacations, and the 
first out-of-town trips he took were not occasioned by the desire 
for rest or recreation, but by his sick brother's call for his medical 
care. Moses Friedenwald, because of his illness, was often com- 
pelled to leave the city. He spent several summers at Cape May, 
and my father frequently had to visit him there. These visits, which 
were the first interruptions of his regular round of professional 
work, lasted from a few days to a week. His enjoyment of the 
pleasures of shore and sea appears in the following extracts from 
letters written at Cape May. 

Cape Mat, August 6, '79. 
Dear Children, 

. . . About twelve o'clock we took our first bath. It is a 
beautiful sight to behold thousands of men, women, and children 



Practice and Personality. 101 

playing their pranks in the sand, everybody laughing at everybody 
else, and each one thinking that he enjoys himself best. The bath 
is exceedingly refreshing and one is provided with a most furious 
appetite, which, at Aunt Betzy's table, to which we were cordially 
invited for dinner, could very readily be appeased. Here one is 
always engaged. There is a great deal of life, music at the hotels, 
promenading on the beach, and a hundred other things to gain 
one's attention, not forgetting the mosquitoes, who paid us a visit 
after a land breeze. They made themselves at home immediately, 
and showed as much familiarity as if they had been old acquaint- 
ances. . . . 

Cape May, July 28, '82. 

Since writing to you yesterday we have spent a very agreeable 
day. This place is delightful ; it is just at the height of the season, 
and everything is in holiday attire. Music everywhere, people 
strolling about joyfully while members of the gallant Fifth Eegi- 
ment can be seen everywhere, giving the place quite a martial ap- 
pearance. . . . 

We tried our luck at fishing. The morning was not very favor- 
able for the sport; still we caught a respectable lot of very large fish, 
which, besides the pleasure they afforded us at the time, furnished 
us with a good supper. 

The night would have been passed in an uninterrupted sleep, had 
not a serenading party, which filled the air with loud, if not the 
sweetest song, entertained our neighbors to the right. Negro songs, 
among which " Way down upon the Suwanee river " played a 
conspicuous role, composed the program, and I could hardly refrain 
from chiming in, " Oh, how my soul is growing faint and weary." 
And, as they finally did grow faint and weary, we again passed into 
the sweet oblivion of sleep. 



102 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Cape May, July 15, '85. 
Yesterday morning ... we caught some very fine fish, but 
I must confess I do not like the sport as much as Uncle Mose does ; 
to be sitting in the boat for so long a time and waiting for a bite 
is quite a tiresome piece of business. 

Cape Mat, July 24, '85. 
What a delightful morning, cool and refreshing ! The flag over 
the Stockton indicates a sea breeze, and it will not be long before 
the mosquitoes will beat a hurried retreat. Now, that is something 
worth talking about, and no one will be happier than dear mamma, 
except myself on her account. And still, although we have been 
much annoyed during the last few days by these merciless little 
pests, we have enjoyed ourselves very much. . . . 

My father's work as a physician was characterized by careful ob- 
servation and well-balanced judgment, qualities which made his 
diagnoses and prognoses sound and accurate. His excellent mem- 
ory for the details of the cases he had once treated was of great help 
to him in reaching his conclusions. The neatness and exactness 
which marked his work as a physician appeared especially in his 
surgical operations upon the eye, in which he was remarkably 
successful. His skill as a surgeon was shown notably in the opera- 
tion for cataract. One of the most interesting of these cases which 
I remember was that of his own father-in-law, for whom he removed 
a cataract when the patient was eighty-nine years old. My grand- 
father had always spent much of his time in reading,* and as his 
hearing was affected by his advanced age, the dimness of sight due 

* In 1889, when I visited Schopfloch, the German village which was 
his wife's birthplace and his own home for some years, the only infor- 
mation concerning my grandfather I could gather from the older in- 
habitants was a tradition that he was so studious that, after he had 
finished a hard day's work, the light by which he was reading could 
be seen in his room at all hours of the night. 



Practice ast> Personality. 103 

to a cataract was a great trial. So successful was the operation my 
father performed that the patient was able to spend almost all of 
his time during the remaining six years of his life in reading ill- 
printed Hebrew books in the smallest of type. A still more inter- 
esting operation occurred in the earlier part of my father's profes- 
sional career. He operated for the removal of a cataract upon a pa- 
tient under chloroform anaesthesia. He had finished making the in- 
cision wben the patient ceased to breathe and became pulseless. My 
father immediately endeavored to resuscitate him by producing ar- 
tificial respiration, through rhythmic compression of the chest, but 
finally gave up in despair. He then finished the operation by ex- 
tracting the cataract, began again the attempt to produce respi- 
ration, and finally succeeded. The next day the sick man, who 
recovered his life and his sight, in spite of the fact that he had 
been reported dead, said, " I never knew the cataract operation was 
so severe. My chest is sore in every part." 

As the preceding anecdote shows, my father remained cool and 
self-possessed in the most trying emergencies. Progressive and 
ever ready to adopt new views and new methods, he was quick to 
see the truth and the importance of the modern ideas concerning 
antisepsis, which he followed in theory and in practice, as is illus- 
trated in the following letter. 

Baltimore, December 11, 1887. 
I got ... [a prominent gynecologist] to operate at the 
Hebrew Hospital this morning for lacerated perineum. I had a 
little talk with him about antisepsis, and he thought when such 
surgeons as Keith succeeded so well without antisepsis it went to 
prove that too much importance had been attached to it. I replied 
that probably he proceeded so aseptically that he could dispense 
with the complicated antiseptic methods that others had em- 
ployed. Dr. , however, used carbolized water for his sponges, 

8 



104 Aakon Friedenwald, M. D. 

and thought that he did all in the way of antisepsis that the case 
required. He was very much pleased with his operation, . . . 
and asked me to make a digital examination. " Well," said I, " I 
told you that Baltimore surgeons would have more respect for 
antiseptic surgery if they knew what it was, and I can now include 
you among the number who do not know, for being willing to permit 
me to examine without previously disinfecting my fingers." 

His fresh and original mind was also manifested in the invention 
of several ingenious instruments. In the earlier days of his practice 
he invented the eye speculum which bears his name. This instru- 
ment, which is very similar to that invented quite independently by 
his good friend, Dr. Russell Murdoch, has several advantages over 
any other appliance of the kind. My father also devised a simple 
and inexpensive instrument for curing club-foot without a surgical 
operation. He used this apparatus successfully in a number of 
cases, but never published any account of it. 

He kept abreast of the best current medical literature, especially 
that dealing with ophthalmology, and gathered a good medical li- 
brary, which he put to frequent and profitable use. He was de- 
voted heart and soul to his profession, and nowhere does this devo- 
tion appear more clearly than in the letters he wrote to me while I 
was studying in Europe. There was scarcely a letter of the two I 
received every week which did not contain extensive comments upon 
my medical experiences and observations, questions concerning the 
methods of the physicians of the Old World, and notes and queries 
and criticisms suggested by his own practice. In the selections 
from the letters which are given in a later chapter these portions 
have naturally been omitted, but it is certainly necessary to mention 
the evidence which they furnish of his intense interest in the high 
vocation to which his life was devoted. 

Though my father was so thoroughly a physician, he never al- 
lowed his character as a doctor to obscnre the fact that he was first 




O 



u 
O 









j 



Practice and Personality. 105 

of all a man. In his intercourse with his patients he never forgot 
that his relation to them was no mere matter of business, but some- 
thing higher and holier. He received the rich and the poor with 
the same cordiality, and was as considerate for the penniless as for 
the wealthy. He was less willing to overlook the meanness and con- 
ceit of some of those on whom fortune had smiled, than to excuse 
the errors and weaknesses of those who knew poverty and misfor- 
tune. Throughout his long career he had many patients among the 
very poor, whom, in his busiest days, he would never turn aside. One 
instance of his attitude may serve for a thousand. On one occasion 
a poor woman came to him to make a partial payment of a bill, and 
told him that her child was unwell, but that she had been unwilling 
to send for the doctor until she had paid her old debt in full. My 
father remonstrated with her, and the next day she received a 
letter ° written in German, of which the following is a translation : 

My Dear Mrs. , 



I beg to send you the enclosed receipted bill, in the hope that you 
will get along better in the future. If you should have need of my 
services, send for me, and I will always be ready to come whether 
you are able to pay or not. 

The friendly and confidential relations in which he stood to his 
patients often caused the latter to seek his advice on various sub- 
jects. On one occasion he dissuaded a poor woman from availing 
herself of the services of a certain lawyer of unsavory reputation, 

known as Judge . A short time later Judge met 

him on the street and demanded in a menacing tone, " Doctor, did 

you tell Mrs. not to consult me, but to go to some one else ?" 

No whit daunted by the blustering shyster, my father replied, 
" Judge, let me tell you a story. A Pennsylvania Dutchman once 

"Recently shown me by the lady in question, who preserves it as a 
valued keepsake. 



106 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

heard that a friend of his had done something at which the Dutch- 
man became very indignant. He went to his friend and insisted 
upon an explanation. The friend replied, 'You bring me up to 
court, and I'll tell you all about it.' Good-bye, Judge." 

The apt and ready repartee which this incident exemplifies was 
a marked characteristic of my father's. He had an inexhaustible 
fund of anecdote which, like Lincoln, he never used except to put 
his position more concretely or to cap a good story told by some- 
one else. As a young man he had been very serious, but in later 
life, after he had emerged from the trying environment of 
his youth, his jovial nature asserted itself, so that my mother re- 
marked that he was the " oldest young man and the youngest old 
man " she had ever known. His power of seeing the humorous side 
of things sometimes led him to indulge in punning, while his ability 
to appreciate other people's jokes found expression in a hearty and 
infectious laugh which was characteristic. 

A patient of his once objected to the size of a bill, though he had 
been carried safely through a long and critical illness. My father 
replied, " Why, that amount would not have paid for a decent 
funeral — and yet you are not satisfied !" Once my father woke up 
laughing, and afterwards related the following dream he had had. 
He was attending a reception, as it appeared, and was introduced 
to a great many strangers, among whom was a minister. The lat- 
ter^ name sounded strange, and my father asked that it be re- 
peated. " The Eeverend Mr. Small-pox." " Why," said my father, 
" why didn't you have your name vaccinated ?" 

On one occasion he was approached by several ladies, with whom 
he was unacquainted, for a contribution to aid in enlarging the 

Baptist Church. He replied, with a smile, " Indeed, 

ladies, the Baptist Church has always been large enough 

for me." 

One further instance of my father's power of repartee may be 



Practice and Personality. 107 

given. His brother Joseph was called upon to speak at a certain 
dinner, but declined, saying that, like Moses, he had a brother 
Aaron, who was the orator of the family. My father rose and re- 
plied, " It is true that Aaron was always ready to speak for Moses," 
and then added, quoting the refrain of a song then popular, " but 
' Not for Joseph, 
Not if he knows it, 
Not for Joseph ! ' " 

He often recalled good stories of things he had heard or seen in 
his early years; his memory, indeed, was really remarkable. Once, 
when he was well on in his teens, his mother showed him an old 
dress of hers which had been soiled and put away long before. He 
immediately recalled the entire incident of the ruining of the dress, 
though it had occurred while he was still in arms. Together with 
his exceptional memory he often showed an amusing absentminded- 
ness, due, of course, to his intense mental concentration upon what- 
ever he was engaged in. One summer morning he started out 
alone in his carriage at an early hour, in order to avoid the heat of 
the day. On returning to the house several hours later he imme- 
diately called for the driver to take charge of the horse. The driver 
returned with the news that the horse and carriage were not at the 
door. The only inference was that they had been stolen, and the 
police were at once notified of the loss. Late in the afternoon a 
friend inquired whether he might send the horse home, as the poor 
animal had been standing all day in front of his house, several 
blocks away from my father's office. My father had absent-mind- 
edly walked home. 



CHAPTER VI. 
Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. 

During the early years of my father's practice no medical society 
existed in Baltimore. The first organization with which he became 
connected was the Baltimore Medical Association, which he joined 
in February, 1867, shortly after its organization in 1866. With re- 
gard to the organization of this society he remarks, in an address 
in memory of his friend, the late Dr. Andrew Hartman, who died 
December 15, 1884, that it " was called into being at a time when 
all fraternization in the profession appeared . . . to be a thing 
of the past. The enthusiasm of the young men at that time held out 
the hope that the organization of a good medical society was not 
an impossibility, and this enthusiasm was greatly encouraged by a 
few of the older members of the profession, the foremost of whom 
was Dr. Hartman." 

On March 16, 1871, he became a member of the recently or- 
ganized East Baltimore Medical Association, which later became the 
Baltimore Medical and Surgical Association. He also attended the 
meetings of the Pathological Society, which was founded in 1867. 
A number of papers, for the most part unpublished, which are now 
in my possession, were read by him before these societies. (See List 
of Writings, p. 353). He joined the Medical and Chirurgical 
Faculty in 1869, helping to resuscitate that ancient and honorable 
organization. He took a prominent part in its proceedings, his 
readiness of speech and broad and thorough knowledge of medicine 
making his remarks interesting. He contributed many papers, a 
number of the more important of which were published. (See List 
of Writings,). There was scarcely a year among the thirty 



Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. 109 

years of his membership in the faculty in which his name did not 
appear on one or more committees, and he received in 1889 the 
honor of election to the Presidency. While holding this office 
he opened the semi-annual meeting at Hagerstown on November 
12-13, 1889, the first of the semi-annual gatherings since regularly 
held in different parts of the state. In his address, among other 
things, he said, that the meeting had for its purpose the " inaugura- 
tion of a new era " in the history of the faculty, looking to " the 
consummation of more intimate relations and a closer bond of fel- 
lowship between the medical practitioners residing in the various 
districts of the State." 

At the annual meeting of the faculty, held in Baltimore on April 
22, 1890, he delivered an address upon the " Modern Hospital," the 
subject being suggested by the completion of the Johns Hopkins 
Hospital and of the City Hospital during the preceding year. The 
address embraced a historical sketch of the development of hos- 
pitals, and was printed in the transactions of the association. In 
1898 he helped to organize the Maryland Ophthalmological and 
Otological Society, and was elected the first president. This body 
later became a section of the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty. 
He was especially interested in the library of the faculty, and was 
active in bringing about its removal to a suitable building on North 
Eutaw Street, in which his portrait is now to be seen. 

He thus became a member of every medical society in Baltimore 
but one, the Baltimore Academy of Medicine, which he could never 
be induced to join. This society, which was founded in 1877, and 
is now defunct, limited its membership to physicians who had been 
in practice for ten years. When pressed by one of its members to 
explain his refusal to join, he jestingly replied, " Any jackass can 
become old, if he only lives long enough." 

He was for many years a member of the American Medical As- 
sociation, and during the nineties he frequently attended its annual 



110 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

meetings, which were held in various parts of the country, concur- 
rently with those of the Association of American Medical Colleges. 
Parties were generally formed by a number of Baltimore physicians, 
and, although my father was one of the older men in these groups, 
he was always one of the jolliest, and contributed much toward the 
enjoyment of the trip. He was also a member of the Ninth Inter- 
national Medical Congress, held in Washington in September, 1887. 

In 1868, in connection with Drs. Augustus F. Erich, D. W. Cath- 
ell, John M. Stevenson, Henry A. Inloes, and Eobert J. Baynes, he 
aided in establishing the " People's Special Dispensary," located 
at the northeast corner of Exeter and Granby Streets. He was the 
oculist of this institution, and continued to act as such for about 
three years, until the dispensary was closed. 

In the fall of 1873, on the occasion of a reorganization, he be- 
came the first professor of diseases of the eye and ear in the College 
of Physicians and Surgeons of Baltimore, which had been estab- 
lished in 1872. He held the professorship for twenty-nine sessions. 
Besides filling the chair of ophthalmology, he took a leading part 
in administering the affairs of the college, being for more than ten 
years treasurer of the Maryland Maternite, which the faculty had 
established, and for eighteen years, from 1884 until his death, 
treasurer of the college itself. The books of the institution, kept 
for many years in his own handwriting, are models of neatness and 
accuracy. His capacity for business affairs appeared also in the la- 
bors he was called upon to perform as executor and trustee of the 
estates of several of his relatives and friends. In connection with 
the professorship he was ophthalmic and aural surgeon at the Bal- 
timore City Hospital and the other hospitals connected with the 
college. He held a similar position at the Nursery and Child's Hos- 
pital and at the Hebrew Hospital. Further reference to his connec- 
tion with the latter institution will be made later. 

As a teacher his work was characterized by a broad and catholic 



Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. Ill 

view of the field of medical study, with a total absence of the nar- 
rowness of many specialists. During his whole career, indeed, al- 
though he devoted most of his attention to ophthalmology, he never 
ceased to practice general medicine, keeping many of his earliest 
patients till the close of his life. He was specially proficient in 
certain branches, such as internal medicine and obstetrics, and 
many of his medical writings, including some of his most important 
papers, deal with the relation of diseases of the eye to diseases of 
other parts of the body. 

It was his custom every year to introduce his course of lectures 
with an address in which he gave an outline of the subjects to be 
discussed, emphasized their importance, and pointed out their con- 
nection with the other branches of medical study. On several occa- 
sions he delivered in addition before the faculty and students the 
customary opening address, introducing the work of the school year, 
and cne of these addresses, which was printed by the members of 
the class, will be found in a later part of this volume. Of his work 
as a teacher one of his former pupils, Dr. John Euhrah, says : " He 
was always interesting . . . and enthusiastic. As he grew 
older his interest did not flag, and there was no change in the tone 
and vigor of his lectures. He was always ready for a joke or a good 
story to enliven his class, and there existed between teacher and 
student a very pleasant good fellowship." Many of the witty things 
he said have perished, but a few examples will give an idea of his 
humor. A student once created some confusion during a lecture 
by continually pushing a chair about. My father, handing him a 
book containing cuts of the eye, said, "When my little grandson 
comes to see me and makes too much noise, I show him a picture- 
book and he becomes quiet." The disturbance ceased. My father 
added, " The picture-book has the same effect in this case as well." 
One evening during a quiz, a student, prompted by his neighbor, 
answered a question incorrectly. My father inquired the name of 



112 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

the obliging neighbor and gave the mark the answer merited to 
him. 

On one occasion, after he had lectured before a rather disorderly 
class at the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, the noise made 
by the students at the medical college annoyed him considerably. 
Finally he said, " There was once a man of such bad repute that at 
his funeral it was for a long time impossible to find anyone to say 
a word in praise of him. Finally a man came forward and said, 
1 This much can be said for brother Jones : he had a brother who 
was much worse than he was.' All that I can say in your favor is 
that your dental brethren are even worse than you are." 

At another time when his class became unruly, he remarked that 
their conduct reminded him of an incident that had happened to 
his friend and fellow-instructor, Dr. G-undry, superintendent of the 
Maryland Hospital for the Insane, at Catonsville. At one of the 
latter's lectures the students became disorderly. The genial in- 
structor merely smiled, thus provoking them to still greater up- 
roariousness. When the racket had subsided a little, he said, " Go 
on, boys; it reminds me so much of home." 

In speaking of instruments for everting the eyelids, he remarked 
that he preferred the fingers, for they were always " on hand." 
On one occasion a physician, noted more for his skill than for his 
good looks, remarked that a brother medical man, who had recently 
died, had taken everything at face value. My father observed, " He 
must have had a mighty poor opinion of you." 

Nowhere does his wit appear to better advantage than in his re- 
plies to toasts at the college banquets, at which he was sure to be 
called upon, whether his name appeared upon the list of speakers 
or not. Several of these speeches are given in the second part of 
this book. 

A student once asked him during a clinic what the anterior 
chamber of the eye was. This matter had been repeatedly ex- 



Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. 113 

plained, and my father curtly told the inquirer that he ought by that 
time to know what the anterior chamber was. At the next meeting 
of the class my father remarked that his good humor was like the 
aqueous humor filling the anterior chamber; when it was lost, the 
supply of it was readily replenished. He then expressed his regret 
for his abrupt reply 

Such incidents as the one just related made the students feel that 
they had in him a sincere friend, and many of them, as Dr. Euhrah 
remarks, " sought his kindly advice and good counsel." He came 
into close touch with the students, not only as an instructor, but 
also for some years, during his early connection with the school, as 
a private lecturer on operative ophthalmic surgery, and especially 
during his long service as treasurer of the college; and it is note- 
worthy that he never had any unpleasantness with a single student. 
A real attachment bound him to his classes, and some of his best 
friends were men who had been under his instruction. He fol- 
lowed the advice recently given by a great physician, that, if a man 
wishes to keep young, he must have young friends. He gathered 
around him a number of young men, for the most part students at 
the college or at the Johns Hopkins University, who frequently 
visited his house and came into most intimate relations with him. 
Whenever any of his old pupils who lived out of town came to Bal- 
timore, they would come to see him and enjoy a good talk together. 
"The silent influence" which he exerted they regarded as "his 
most precious gift as a teacher." He taught "more than mere 
science." " Daily contact with one whose thoughts and deeds " 
were " of the noblest kind " was " an example and a power for 
good." Such was the impression he left upon his students. 

He was chairman of the executive committee of the college until 
the end of his life, and was most active in advancing the interests 
of the school and in improving its methods and its management. 
Although he was for many years one of the older members of the 



114 Aaron - Friedenwald, M. D. 

faculty, lie was most progressive in his attitude towards proposed 
innovations, and no one was more active than he in bringing about 
the erection of a new building and the acquisition by the Sisters 
of Mercy of the land necessary to build the present City Hospital, 
which is connected with the College of Physicians and Surgeons. 

Even more important than my father's work as a physician, as a 
teacher, and as an administrator was his activity in bringing about 
the formation of the Association of American Medical Colleges, 
which was his greatest service to the medical profession. At that 
time students were graduated by all the medical schools in Balti- 
more and by almost all the schools throughout the United States 
after a two years' ungraded course, there being no matriculation 
requirements and no orderly sequence in the presentation of the 
various subjects. 

The need for a more extended and systematic course of study in 
the medical schools of this city caused, at the suggestion of Dr. 
Eugene F. Cordell, the issue of a call for a meeting of representa- 
tives of the local colleges. Upon this call, which was dated Decem- 
ber 17, 1889, my father's name appears as President of the Medical 
and Chirurgical Faculty. The circular stated that " with a view to 
joint action on the part of our five medical schools " it was " pro- 
posed to hold a meeting of representatives of the faculties to discuss 
the feasibility of introducing reform." The meeting was to be 
held on January 15, 1890, but the absence of many of the delegates 
caused it to be adjourned until January 23. At the meeting held 
on the latter date my father was the sole representative of the Col- 
lege of Physicians and Surgeons present. It was proposed that the 
local colleges should unite in adopting a graded course of three 
years, together with other reforms. My father opposed this action, 
as he feared students would be deterred from coming to Baltimore 
when they could get degrees in a shorter space of time elsewhere. 
" Professor Friedenwald said that he was commissioned by his 



Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. 115 

faculty to bring before the meeting a proposition for a national 
conference for the consideration of the reforms suggested in medical 
education, and he named Nashville, Tennessee, as the proper place 
and the next annual convention of the American Medical Associa- 
tion as the proper occasion for the conference. He added that his 
faculty did not regard it as feasible or expedient, but, on the con- 
trary, suicidal, for the Baltimore schools or any one of them to 
take this action alone." * 

This view he had vigorously advanced at the meeting of the 
faculty of the College of Physicians and Surgeons; he had con- 
vinced his colleagues of the correctness of his position; and had 
been delegated by them to present this plan at the meeting of the 
local committee. Here, too, his view prevailed and the plan to ad- 
vance which the meeting had primarily been called, that of intro- 
ducing the proposed reforms in Baltimore alone, was frustrated. 

As a result, circulars, signed by my father as chairman and by 
Dr. Cordell as secretary, were sent out by the Baltimore medical 
schools, and at the gathering of the American Medical Association 
" the meeting for reorganization was held in the senate chamber 
of the Capitol building at Nashville, as announced, May 21, 1890, 
Prof. Friedenwald presiding at the opening. A permanent organ- 
ization was effected by the election of the venerable Dr. N. S. Davis 
as president, and several vice-presidents," 2 my father being chosen 
first vice-president. 

The effect of the organization of the Association of American 
Medical Colleges was to raise the standard of instruction in medical 
schools throughout the United States. This result, for which 
American physicians had struggled fifty years in vain, was brought 
about at that particular time by the wise and vigorous action of my 
father. 

1 Prom " The American Medical College Association," by Eugene F. 
Cordell, M. D., Maryland Medical Journal, January 11, 1896. 

2 Cordell, I. c. 



116 Aaron Feiedenwald, M. D. 

This summary of my father's professional activities would be in- 
complete without some reference to his attitude toward his fellow- 
practitioners. Viewing his profession as a noble calling, he con- 
demned severely any infraction upon medical ethics on the part of 
others, and set for himself the highest standards of duty towards 
his brethren. Throughout his professional life he followed the in- 
junction of Hillel, " That which is hateful to thee, do thou not 
unto thy fellow." 

Even before my father's graduation he was interested in the af- 
fairs of the Jewish community, acting from 1856, the date of the 
organization of the Hebrew Ladies' Sewing Society (of which his 
sister-in-law, Mrs. B. Stern, was the first president), until his de- 
parture for Europe in 1860, as secretary of that body. He was 
deeply interested in the first efforts to establish the Hebrew Hos- 
pital in 1859, and in 1868, the year it was opened, he was appointed 
one of its visiting physicians, becoming oculist and aurist in May, 
1890, when his increased practice no longer allowed him to act as 
general visiting physician. On this occasion the Hospital and 
Asylum Association adopted resolutions expressing their apprecia- 
tion of his past services and their satisfaction that his connection 
with the institution would not be severed. He was well known to 
all the inmates of the institution, and especially to the aged who 
found shelter in the Asylum maintained in connection with it. 
Many of these old people he had known from his childhood, and 
they respected and loved him. On one occasion the superintendent 
of the institution asked him to use his influence to quiet one old 
lady who could not be induced to stop bemoaning her troubles so 
loudly that everyone in the building was disturbed. He went up to 
her room and asked her what she was crying about. She gave him 
a long account of her sorrows, which were mostly imaginary. When 
she had finished he told her she was quite right, that she was so 
sadly afflicted that she ought to keep on crying, and indeed to 



Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. 117 

scream more loudly than before. She did her best to follow this 
advice. The wailing went on increasing in intensity, and finally the 
poor old soul gasped out, " Lieber, herziger DoMor, ich hann nit 
mehrl" and ceased her clamor. 

My father was always anxious to advance the interests of the 
Hospital; he suggested many improvements, and strove to induce 
the directors to take a broad and liberal attitude, and to lessen the 
difficulties of admission. His interest in the institution appears in 
two addresses, printed in this volume, which he delivered at the 
Hospital; the longer of these, which was printed at the desire of 
the association, was made at the dedication of an addition to the 
main building. 

I cannot give a better idea of the spirit in which he worked for 
the cause of charity than by quoting the following letter. 

Baltimore, March 25, 1888. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . [This evening] I had to attend a meeting at Mr. Fried- 
mann's house on Lombard Street in the interest of a poor woman 
who is an inmate of Spring Grove Asylum. It is a most disagree- 
able, cold night. It is difficult to say whether it is hailing or rain- 
ing, and the pavements are very sleety. It is a night of all nights 
which would keep one at home, and still about twelve or fifteen 
men left their cosy homes to look after the interests of a poor 
woman who had neither friends nor relatives. "Well, the world 
is not so bad after all," I thought after I went away, and I rejoiced 
that the woman would be taken into the Hebrew Hospital, and that 
there were enough men on the Board who would not be restricted 
by the narrow limits of printed laws, but who had good sense and 
good hearts to guide them in their decision. . . . 

In 1872 my father helped to found the Hebrew Orphan Asylum, 
and he became a member of its Board of Directors, retaining this 



118 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

position for thirty years. He was closely attached to the Asylum, 
making it his chief object as a director not only to make the life of 
the children as natural and homelike as possible, 3 but to make it a 
thoroughly Jewish life, such as the children's parents would have 
wished them to lead. A set of memorial resolutions sent by the 
directors of the institution to his family emphasizes his attachment 
to the children cared for by the Asylum. He was for many years 
chairman of the committee on education, and the last public func- 
tion he performed was the distribution of prizes at the public exam- 
ination of the children, shortly before his last departure for Europe. 

He was for many years a member of the Hebrew Benevolent So- 
ciety, and a regular attendant at its annual gatherings. Though 
never an officer of the society, he was ready at all times to place at 
its disposal his services, which were frequently called upon. In 
December, 1892, he delivered before this body an address, reprinted 
in this volume, which was regarded as one of the best ever made at 
the yearly banquets. His voice was raised on more than one occa- 
sion for more considerate treatment of those who applied for relief. 

My father was brought into close touch with the Hebrew Benevo- 
lent Society through his connection with the Baron de Hirseh Fund 
for the relief of Eussian Jewish immigrants. In 1881, at the be- 
ginning of the immigration from Eussia, he was one of the leaders 
of those interested in providing for the reception and protection of 
the newcomers, and gave up much of his time to aid them. From 

8 On one occasion the case of a child who had stolen a piece of bread 
from the pantry was brought before the Board. Several of the Directors 
were inclined to accede to the suggestion of the authorities of the 
asylum that the child be severely punished. My father, however, de- 
manded that an investigation be made into the amount of the bread 
the children received, and, as this amount was found to be entirely 
insufficient, he declared that, if punishment were to be meted out at all, 
it was the asylum authorities who deserved it; and the children were 
allowed from that time on to have as much bread at meals as they 
wished. 



Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. 119 

this time on his activities in behalf of the Russian immigrants 
never ceased, and it was in recognition of this fact that he was 
asked to direct the work in Baltimore of the fund established by 
Baron Maurice de Hirsch. He accepted, and invited Messrs. Moses 
E. Walter and Elias Bohr to join him in the committee. Mr. S. 
Baroway, who was appointed agent of the fund in this city, con- 
ferred every afternoon with my father, who passed upon all the 
work of the committee. All the voluminous reports sent to New 
York were written by him, as was all of his extensive correspond- 
ence in general. The work of the Baltimore committee began on 
July 1, 1890, and my father continued to act as chairman until 
April 1, 1901, when, at his request, the work was given over in 
charge of the Hebrew Benevolent Society. In 1890 the Hirsch 
committee aided the Isaac Baer Levinsohn Hebrew Literary So- 
ciety to obtain suitable quarters for a night school for the immi- 
grants opened by the latter body the year before ; and a committee, 
of which my father was chairman, supported the school, which did 
good service in Americanizing the newcomers, for a number of 
years. My father was chosen a member of the executive committee 
of the " American Committee for the Amelioration of the Condi- 
tion of the Russian Refugees," an organization formed in New York, 
on September 23, 1891, by a convention composed of representatives 
of Jewish organizations in various parts of this country, called by 
the Trustees of the Baron de Hirsch Fund to consider means of 
dealing with the problem presented by the great increase in the 
immigration of Russian Jews, consequent upon the increased se- 
verity of the persecutions in Russia in 1890. In 1892 my father or- 
ganized a Baltimore branch of this committee, composed of two rep- 
resentatives of the Hirsch fund, two representatives of the Hebrew 
Benevolent Society, and two representatives of the " Jewish 
Alliance," a short-lived organization, formed in February, 1891, and 
composed mainly of Russian Jews, the object of which was also to 
aid the recent immigrants. 
9 



120 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

During his tenure of the chairmanship of the two committees 
my father disbursed over fifty-eight thousand dollars, 4391 cases, 
aggregating 10,534 persons, being relieved. An idea of the impor- 
tance of this work may be gathered from the fact that the total 
number of Jewish immigrants landing at Baltimore during this 
period was 24,095. 

The character of my father's work as chairman of the Hirsch 
committee may be seen in the following account, contributed by 
Mr. Baroway to the Jewish Comment of August 29, 1902, shortly 
after my father's death. At one time "two shiploads of Jewish 
immigrants arrived from Hamburg and were about to be deported. 
Individual bonds of one thousand dollars for each immigrant were 
demanded that they should not become public charges. Such 
amounts . . . were impossible to raise, and the offer to pledge 
the buildings of the Hebrew Hospital and Orphan Asylum was 
rejected by the Treasury Department. Dr. Friedenwald had a busy 
time then ; he did not rest, he could not sleep. He knew the return 
of those people to Eussia at that time meant starvation to many, 
baptism to some. He neglected his practice and duties to his family 
to save the unfortunate immigrants, and he succeeded. He found 
some influential man . . . who went to Washington to lay 
the case before the government, resulting in the release of the immi- 
grants. I remember with what joy he greeted me when I brought 
him the message from the Canton pier, ' Come and get your people.' 
It was a great victory for him, and had he come that day into pos- 
session of a fortune he could not have been (happier). The immi- 
grants did not know the particular person to whom they were in- 
debted, and the person in question was too modest and unassuming 
to claim the credit. But when I informed him in later years that 
some of those people were doing well and were prosperous, he en- 
joyed the news as none but a noble man like him could enjoy it. 

" During the winter of 1897, when a bill was presented to Con- 



Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. 121 

gress, requiring that immigrants who could not read the language 
of their native country should be excluded from landing in this 
country, which meant the shutting out of the majority of the Eus- 
sian immigrants, who, while not illiterate, could not read or write 
the Eussian language, it was again Dr. Friedenwald who cham- 
pioned the cause of the immigrants. He sent telegrams to all the 
Maryland representatives and senators in Congress, and made his 
friends in other states do the same, which resulted in the modifica- 
tion of the bill so that new arrivals (would) be required to be able 
to read any (one) language (including jargon). The bill, how- 
ever, was subsequently vetoed by the President." 

That my father appreciated the important bearing of the Eus- 
sian Jewish immigration upon the future of the Jews of America is 
shown by the following letter, written June 16, 1889, eight years 
after the beginning of the great migration of Eussian Jews into the 
United States. 

". . . The Eussians here have lately opened a large Hebrew 
school. They are now organizing a large charitable society to en- 
able them to contribute their share to the general charities already 
organized. They are becoming an important factor in the com- 
munity, and it looks as if some of these days they will bear the 
same relation to the German Jews which the latter bear to the 
Portuguese Jews. . . ." 

My father was a member of the Hebrew Free Burial Society, 
and indeed he was interested in all the Jewish charitable organiza- 
tions in the city, as well those maintained by the more recent 
arrivals as the societies of longer standing. Most of the non-sec- 
tarian charities, such as the Baltimore Association for the Im- 
provement of the Condition of the Poor and the German Orphan 
Asylum, numbered him as a member as well. In June, 1883, he 
was one of a small group of gentlemen who, in order to give em- 



122 Aaron Priedenwald, M. D. 

ployment to vagrants, formed the " Provident Wood-yard Com- 
mittee of the Baltimore Charity Organization Society." Of this 
Wood-yard Committee, which later became the Friendly Inn Asso- 
ciation, Mr. Henry Janes was chairman and my father secretary. 

He took a deep and intelligent interest in politics, being a con- 
sistent Eepublican from the time of his return from Europe. He 
never held political office, except as a member of the short-lived 
" Keform " School Board nominated by Mayor Hooper. The old 
School Board appealed to the courts, which set aside the mayor's 
action. Only once did my father take an active part in a political 
struggle; on November 3, 1897, he made a speech at one of the 
closing meetings of the campaign. 

His activities were not limited to the concerns of the Baltimore 
community, but extended to most of the important Jewish organ- 
izations of national scope. In 1886 he was one of the founders of 
the Jewish Theological Seminary Association, and was for many 
years one of its vice-presidents. Together with Dr. Cyrus Adler, 
he established the Baltimore branch of the association, of which he 
was president until his death. He was most active in bringing 
about the incorporation of the Association in 1902 with the Jewish 
Theological Seminary of America, which resulted in putting the 
Seminary upon an assured financial and scholastic basis. He took 
great interest in the Seminary, regularly attending the meetings in 
New York. His attitude toward the institution appears in his 
letters. At his decease the Board of Directors of the Seminary 
adopted a resolution expressing their " sense of loss at the passing 
away of an upright citizen, a distinguished member of the medical 
profe? sion, a devout and conscientious Israelite, a promoter of many 
worthy establishments for the amelioration of human suffering and 
for the advancement of sound learning, both general and Jewish, 
and an officer and zealous worker in behalf of this Seminary." In 
his memorable inaugural address, President Schechter recalled 



Work in Medical and Communal Organizations. 123 

his name, among the names of other departed friends of the Semi- 
nary, as that of " a scholar and a gentleman . . . whose in- 
terest in the institution only ceased with life itself." He left the 
Seminary a bequest, which was increased by my mother, and the 
Directors accepted the suggestion of the family that this bequest be 
used to establish the " Aaron Friedenwald Prize in Jewish The- 
ology," annually given for the best essay upon a subject announced 
by the President of the Faculty of the Seminary. My father was 
also a vice-president of the Union of Orthodox Congregations of 
the United States and Canada. 

In 1888 he helped to establish the Jewish Publication Society 
of America, being for many years one of its honorary vice-presi- 
dents; he was also instrumental in forming the Baltimore branch 
of the Society. A resolution passed by the Society at his death 
speaks of him as " an earnest advocate of its cause and a stanch 
adherent of its ideals," and expresses " appreciation of his services, 
of his lofty personal character, and of his . . . devotion to 
science and enlightenment." He was one of the founders of the 
American Jewish Historical Society, regularly attending its annual 
meetings and taking a great interest in its work. His thorough 
knowledge of the past of the Jews of Baltimore was on several oc- 
casions of service to students of the subject. On June 10, 1888, 
he was a prime mover in organizing in this city a branch of the 
Alliance Israelite Unwerselle, and he was in close touch with the 
philanthropic work of the Alliance, cooperating in all their im- 
portant activities, such as the relief of the Jewish sufferers from 
the Bessarabian famine. 

The catholic Jewish sympathies which appear in his connection 
with all the organizations mentioned are most clearly manifested, 
perhaps, in his connection with the Zionist movement. He was for 
years a member of the Choveve Zion; and his grasp of the signifi- 
cance of the "Love of Zion" appears in his address on the sub- 



124 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

ject, selections from which are given in this volume. His visit to 
the Holy Land convinced him that Palestine could again become 
the home of a large part of the Jewish people. The lecture upon 
the Jewish colonies in Palestine, reprinted in part on page 318 
of this book, exhibits his enthusiastic appreciation of the value of 
farm life in the land of Israel in making of the denizens of the 
Russian ghettos stalwart and self-respecting men. He was for 
several years a vice-president of the Federation of American Zion- 
ists, and he regarded the movement as a force tending to unite and 
strengthen, to inspire and elevate the Jewish people. He beheld 
in Zionism a noble ideal. 



CHAPTEE VII. 

Letters (1887-1892). 

In April, 1887, having completed the course of study at the Col- 
lege of Physicians and Surgeons, and finished a year's work as resi- 
dent physician at the City Hospital, I went to Europe for further 
medical study. During my absence I received every week two or 
three letters, selections from which, except as otherwise indicated, 
make up the present chapter. 

Baltimore, May 11, '87. 
Dear Harry, 

By this time you have, no doubt, acquainted yourself with the 
more prominent features of Berlin. You feel somewhat at home 
U nter den Linden, still look reverently at the ScMoss, wonder 
why they do not put some clothes on the statues on the Brucke, and, 
with all your patriotism, you will have to concede that the Bran- 
deriburger Thor is quite an improvement on our entrance to Druid 
Hill Park. I suppose you have gotten your geography regarding 
the Charite, University KliniTc, your restaurant, and your lodg- 
ings, etc., all right. You have measured the various distances, 
studied the shortest cuts, and picked out the softest streets to walk 
on ; and one not initiated might take you for a fellow who had been 
there some time. ... It will puzzle you a little at first, when 
you take hold of the University Catalogue, to decide what, and how 
much to take up. It will all come right, and you will have a fine 
time; there is nothing like being young, after all. It may take 
fifty years of your life fully to realize this. . . . 

I wonder how Virchow looks now. Then he was in the prime of 



126 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

life, about forty-four years of age, I should judge, with a perfectly 
black beard and excellent physique. I wonder whether he still 
passes so much of his time in the Pathological Institute in the 
" Charite " grounds. 1 

Baltimore, Sunday evening, June 26, 1887. 
. . . I was very much pleased with your description of the 
great synagogue in Berlin. It must be a very fine edifice. What 
interested me most, however, was that Berlin, so noted for its great 
Beformers, has not let the idea run riot, but has been exceedingly 
moderate in the changes made. Beform in America is pretty much 
what the wholesale clothing dealers wanted it to be. The Babbis 
were too much concerned about their salaries to take any active in- 
terest in shaping it. . . . 

Baltimore, July 3, 1887. 
. . . I am sorry that Hildesheimer's preaching does not please 
you. It is the fault of the man and not of his peculiar position as 
an orthodox minister. I had the pleasure of hearing Sachs, the 
Berlin rabbi, in my time, and he was the most eloquent preacher I 
ever heard. I also heard Hirsch, of Frankfort, and he certainly is a 
preacher through and through. . . . There is a synagogue in 
Heidereutergasse, in which Sachs preached, which is still strictly 
orthodox. I would advise you to look in at that place of worship 
also. . . . 

Baltimore, July 10, 1887. 
. . . So you think that " Pappy L." has made himself ridicu- 
lous by his attack on Koch's teachings. I have no doubt that you 
have heard the old Jewish saying that when the good Lord wants a 

1 Virchow remained the same indefatigable teacher, investigator, and 
worker in many fields for more than forty years after my father had 
been his pupil. 



Letters. 127 

very big fool, he picks out an old man and lets his wife die. I have 
always felt the force of this old saying, and therefore I was not so 
much surprised at his doings at the National Medical Conven- 
tion. . . . 

I am rather surprised to learn from you that Schweigger criti- 
cized rather severely some of the teachings of Grgefe. I am not able 
to estimate his mental caliber, but for a creature to scoff at his 
creator shows that the man is incapable of veneration. 

Baltimore, July 24, 1887. 

. . . Since finishing my letter to you, I have just thought of 
a little affair of late [date] in which the Hon. James H. has again 
extensively advertised himself as an ass of no small dimensions. 
As you may perhaps have seen from the papers, they, that is, the 
great Democratic party, had a primary election of delegates to a 
convention to name the candidates for State offices. Now, there is, 
as you know, a general desire for reform. M. and others have 
washed their very dirty hands clean, and arrayed themselves against 
Gorman and Easin, hoping thereby to win the confidence of the re- 
spectable portion of their party. They made great efforts to gain 
power in the primaries. Mr. Easin, as usual, managed his cam- 
paign very adroitly. He had all the bummers and henchmen and 
professional repeaters in line, so that men who had any business to 
attend to became disgusted and to a great extent left the field to the 
unwashed. The Hon. " Jeems," anxious to avail himself of his pre- 
rogative as a citizen and a Democrat, went to the polls, and with 
great alacrity prepared himself to accept the offer of a certain Mr. 
S. to give him a place at the upper end of the line. An officer pre- 
vented this " swap " of places, acting according to instructions. 
" Jeems " became indignant that the citizens of Baltimore had been 
subjected to this humiliation and insult, became furious, frothed at 
the mouth, and actually asked for the dismissal of the faithful of- 



128 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

ficer. The whole town is laughing at the Mayor, and the Mayor is 
wondering that the citizens don't feel insulted at the outrage upon 
the man who represents the citizens of Baltimore, and who has 
girded his loins for a trip to the gubernatorial seat at Annapo- 
lis. . . . 

Baltimore, July 31, 1887. 

. . . I am pleased to hear that you find Hirschberg a good 
teacher and that you are interested in his demonstrations. I was 
rather struck by your remark some time ago, that you did not want 
to hear so much talk, but wanted to do some work yourself. I re- 
called the talk that von Grsef e delighted and edified his hearers with, 
and I see you also have found out that it makes a little difference 
who does the talking. 

. . . So you don't find all German students saturated with 
wisdom. I made that discovery twenty-seven years ago. I remem- 
ber a conversation with a newly-fledged Doctor of Medicine on the 
subject of duelling. When he exclaimed, " How can gentlemen set- 
tle their quarrels ? " I replied that it seemed to me, from all I had 
heard of the causes of duels in general, that duels were not so much 
resorted to in order to settle quarrels, as quarrels were resorted to in 
order to have duels. . . . 

Bedford, Pa., August 2, 1887. 
Here we are at Bedford, amid its mountains, its green hills, its 
lovely valleys, its peculiar Pennsylvanians with their sing-song talk, 
with many who are not Pennsylvanians, among whom we find not a 
few of our old acquaintances from Baltimore. We arrived here 
last night, having consumed the whole day in the journey. . . . 
It was a pleasant journey; . . . the scenery . . . never 
became wearisome. . . . The moment we left Baltimore we had 
the beautiful picture of a continuous rolling country before us. The 



Letteks. 129 

little hills, with the picturesque farms and cottages, were here and 
there cleft by lovely rushing streams, crossed by numberless fine 
hedges, gradually growing higher and higher as we approached 
Pennsylvania territory, till we should have talked very disrespect- 
fully of them, did we not call them mountains. For the larger part 
of the way we were following the course of some stream ; from Har- 
risburg on we seldom lost sight of the Susquehanna, and this stream, 
though a shallow one, in which we missed the gratifying sight of 
fleeting sail, gave a pronounced charm to the scenery. There were 
a great many canals and mill races met with on the way, and often 
aqueducts of no mean architecture, conduiting one stream over an- 
other. . . . 

Bedford, August 7, 1887. 
. . . We are having quite a holiday here, with nothing at all 
to do, plenty of time to do it in, and plenty of good people to help 
you in the doing it. This is a quaint little town, with very good 
people of very simple ways of life. . . . They all work hard 
here, and seem to work cheerfully; they are very kind-hearted, and 
are always extremely polite to everybody. . . . 

Baltimore, September 13, 1887. 
. . . Your letter, dated September 1, just arrived, and re- 
called to me a trip that I took to Potsdam myself, one . . . 
Sunday. The Muschel Saal and the Raphael Gallery are still vivid 
pictures in my mind, as also a certain windmill that Frederick the 
Great wanted to have removed, but the miller asserted his rights 
under the law, and the great King gave up the idea, and the wind- 
mill was left untouched as an evidence of the monarch's respect for 
the rights of others. I remember also the Charlottenhof, with that 
simple, blue-striped bed-room in which the great Humboldt slept, 
and the adjoining one, in which his " Cosmos " was written. The 



130 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

kindness which Frederick William IV. showed to the great scientist 
was about the only good thing I heard about him. ... He 
was still alive, but had lost his mind, and the present Kaiser was 
reigning in his stead as Prince Kegent. I also remember a beautiful 
garden, but don't know where to place it. I remember the beautiful 
polished floors and the felt shoes one had to put on before he trod 
upon holy ground. Many things were told about Frederick the 
Great, one of which I remember. When Napoleon came to Berlin, 
he wanted to visit the grave of the Prussian King. His wish was 
carried out, and on reaching the grave he exclaimed, " If you were 
here, I should not be." . . . 

Baltimore, September 21, 1887. 

. . . I think you are right in the abstract in your criticism of 
the Hildesheimers' notion of orthodoxy. I agree with you that that 
sort of religion won't serve the purpose of cementing parties. I 
fear, indeed, that it often drives away from conservative Judaism 
people who have a great inclination that way. We must, however, 
allow a little for the intensity of feeling that has developed in these 
people from watching the destructive tendencies of what has been 
called Beform. Men like Hildesheimer, old Babbi Bamberger of 
Wurzburg, and, I believe, Hirsch, of Frankfort, have, no doubt, 
been made less yielding by noticing the effect that Beform has had. 
I believe that the time is approaching when more men like Morais 
will come to the front, men earnest, sincere, of strong religious feel- 
ing, who, although strict observers of the law, will not condemn so 
unmercifully others who may have deviated a little, but will recog- 
nize them as brothers, with whom they are willing to join in efforts 
for a common purpose. 

Let me thank you, dear Harry, for that beautiful drawing of 
Mendelssohn's grave, and for the ivy leaves which you plucked on it. 
I have shown the drawing to a number of friends, who admired it 



Letters. 131 

very much.. Have you made any inquiries about the descendants 
of this great man who still remain within the fold ? . . . 

Baltimore, October 27, 1887. 

. . . I regret to learn from you that the anti-Semitic spirit 
has taken such a hold upon the people of Berlin. I think that our 
people will find it very difficult to fight against. . . . There is 
no legislation that can combat a dislike which a majority has for a 
minority, and I fear that for a good while, at least, the sentiment 
will grow stronger. It is a great temptation to many people to con- 
sider themselves better than other people. In England and America 
that chivalric spirit which is averse to taking advantage of the weak 
prevails, and therefore I think we are pretty safe here. In Germany 
the people are not so used to fair play, and, when they can't find 
anyone else to vent their spleen upon, they hunt down the Jew. 

The battle has been fought, the victory has been won as usual, in 
the regular way, and Ferdinand C. Latrobe will again be invested 
with the mayoralty robes, the same ones which were, all the samee, 
according to Cowen, stolen for him three times before. The tri- 
umphant are crowing only for the fair fame of Baltimore, which, 
they say, has been defamed by the Independent Democrats, and 
which the great regular Democratic majority, according to their in- 
terpretation, has again restored. The Independents and the Be- 
publicans made a good fight, evidently had plenty of money at their 
command, and everything looked favorable, but the regulars were 
not to be thwarted. Gorman and Higgins and Morris Thomas and 
Freeman Basin want majorities ; they have made it their life study 
how to secure them; their resources are inexhaustible, their devices 
mysterious, and they can get all the majorities they need with com- 
paratively few Democratic votes. The Bepublicans have secured 
eight councilmen in the First Branch, and three in the Second 
Branch ; but the regulars have a majority and they know how to use 



132 Aaeon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

a majority just as well as how to secure one. That after the gal- 
lant fight which has been made against them, after the terrible ar- 
raignment to which they have been subjected, they should come out 
victorious, almost makes me despair of the possibility of their ever 
being dislodged. . . . 

Baltimoee, November 9, 1887. 
. . . From the tenor of your remarks on the political prob- 
abilities you will not be greatly disappointed when I again report an 
utter defeat of the opposition to the regular Democratic party. 
. . . The Democrats will not forget what they consider were 
grievances during and after the war. They don't want to see their 
ancient enemies in power. They need a strong hold on power to 
secure a continuation of a Democratic national government, and 
that is the sum total of their political philosophy. For all this, 
there is no use in looking gloomily at the future. Eeason and jus- 
tice will triumph in the end. In a popular form of government the 
conservative spirit, while it has drawbacks, has the advantage of 
protecting the government against sudden changes. There is one 
satisfaction after all, that, if the result of the election will be bad 
for the state, those who controlled it will suffer along with the rest 
of us ; and, if the newly-elected legislators realize that some account 
will have to be taken of sentiment favorable to election reforms, we 
shall reap some benefit from the campaign. . . . 

Baltimoee, November 23, 1887. 
. . . Last night we listened to the first of a series of lectures 
at the Peabody Institute by Mr. Serviss, of Brooklyn, on the evolu- 
tion of the planets. It was the best popular scientific lecture that 
it has ever been my privilege to listen to. Generally lecturers of 
this kind suffer either from overdosing the audience with unintelli- 
gible facts, or from the fact that, in the attempt on the part of the 
lecturer to be exceedingly entertaining, the scientific value of the 



Letters. 133 

lecture is entirely lost. This lecturer is extremely happy in teach- 
ing profound scientific theories, and in keeping his audience in- 
tensely interested. He explained the nebular theory . . . and 
finally told the doleful story of the moon, closing with death, and 
becoming the tomb of a once great creation. And all this beautiful 
earth, now in its infancy . . . has the same career before it, 
. . . and some of these days . . . another moon will be 
added to the constellation, and telescopes will probably be directed 
at it from the observatories of other planets, and our dismal fate 
will be commiserated by some great lecturer at some other Peabody 
Institute! And still we bother about investments and life insur- 
ance and the reform of the Democratic party! I am afraid the 
Democratic party will die before it can reform itself. 

Poor Emma Lazarus had to die already ! We received the news 
of her end on Monday, and yesterday the papers brought an account 
of her simple funeral at Cypress Hills. Dr. Mendes officiated. Her 
song has been sung, its tones have died away, but her name will 
live. . . . 

Baltimore, December 18, 1887. 
. . . I thank you cordially . . . for your congratula- 
tions upon my approaching birthday. I hope we will have a real 
old-fashiotued good time when the real celebration arrives. We will 
think of you at that time and try to imagine that you are with us. 
Birthdays are very nice things, but the trouble about them is that 
when they come often a fellow gets old in the meantime. 

I hope that the case of the Crown Prince [Frederick] will con- 
tinue promising. It is a pity to see such a brave fellow and such a 
fine specimen of manhood threatened with death. How many hopes 
have been built upon his reign ! I was sorry to learn of the young 
prince's intimacy with Stocker, and of his probable sympathy with 
his hatred of our people. . . . 



134 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Baltimoee, December 18, 1887. 
I was a little angry at X., who was the orator of the evening. 
. . . His theme was " Charity." He treated the subject well ; 
he spoke very little about it. . . . Taking his brass into consid- 
eration, he is a very polished gentleman. 

Baltimoee, December 21, 1887. 
Your letter with an additional congratulation on my birthday, 
as well as that beautiful " Autobiography " of Arlt's, was placed in 
my hands quite apropos yesterday morning. Well, we had a very 
nice time of it on Monday night. I was marched up into the parlor 
where all the presents were spread out. ... I prize none of 
them more highly than the one you sent me. The good, plain, sen- 
sible man whom I loved as a teacher and revered as an ophthalmolo- 
gist was again brought vividly before me by his own simple, beauti- 
ful, and true story of himself. It is highly gratifying in this ma- 
terialistic age, of which we are given to complaining so much, to 
find that, after all, when we contemplate the life of a man whom 
the world delights to honor, above all the genius that has been as- 
cribed to him, above all the learning that he has adorned himself 
with, above all the experience which he had acquired to give him 
authority and to make him master, above all the written and un- 
written wisdom with which he enriched the world, that above all 
these stands the man himself. So it is when we study the life and 
character of Arlt. If ever a statue should be erected to him, the 
sculptor could not fulfil his task better than by moulding the man 
himself, plain, unassuming, with his kind, benevolent smile, and, if 
he chooses to remember his work, let him represent it in figures on 
the pedestal, above which the man should be placed. . . . 

Baltimoee, December 22, 1887. 
Deae Moses and Jane, 

If s all over ! Of course, I mean my birthday. All the good 
wishes have been received and appreciated, all the presents have 



Letters. 135 

been admired and acknowledged except yours, which I take occasion 
to return my thanks for now; all the egg-nog has been drunk, all 
the cakes and fruit and nuts have been digested, and the event has 
been nicely placed on the shelf with those that have gone before, in 
the hope that those that will follow will be equally pleasant. But 
I am only fifty-seven years of age, and I have to ask you to knock 
off the one year which you placed to my account in error. Some 
foolish young man who bestows a good deal of attention upon the 
cultivation of his first mustache might be willing to have himself 
considered a year older than . . he is. . . . There are 

other individuals who, at certain periods of their lives and under 
special circumstances, prefer to have a little discount made, but 
men like you and me ask only that the days which they have in- 
vested in the repository of time be quoted at par. 

This is a very varied life we lead, at any rate. Some of us live a 
great deal in a short time; some require a very long time to do a 
small share of living; some live too much and therefore cannot live 
long ; some hardly live at all and reach a high old age. There is no 
man so poor that he is not envied for something by somebody, some- 
times by a very rich somebody. How many try hard to make a 
living and kill themselves when they succeed! How many can 
never make a living, and outlive generations ! If life could only be 
bought, what a big business somebody could do who had the article 
for sale, even if he established himself in some side street! The 
older his stock, the more desirable it would become ; and he would 
never have anything to fear from the fashions and their changes. I 
believe some of our most prominent men and women who couldn't 
buy life in fee simple under this arrangement would be willing to 
pay very heavily for a " lease of ninety-nine years " and to make a 
compromise to knock off "renewals forever." Some are . . . 
happy in looking over their balance sheet, for the . . . days 
that they have lived for others have made their years plentiful; 
10 



136 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

then there are those who rob others of their years, and never enrich 
their own store. What a deal of " swapping " would be done if it 
only could be . . . ! I believe there are some good folks in 
Mount Vernon Place who would not shun a market like Slammer's 
alley to drive a bargain of this kind. I should not like to state the 
boot that some leaders of an uptown club whose joints begin to 
creak like a rusty hinge would offer for the elastic limbs of some 
young jig-dancer. Yes, all sorts of trading of this kind would be 
extensively carried on, buying, selling, leasing, swapping; I am 
afraid there would be more of this than of speculation in the great 
future beyond this life. I think I could point out a fellow or two 
who would sell an eternity of the future for a six months' promis- 
sory note without grace, which would bring a little animal enjoy- 
ment during the time it ran. But there are other folks, too, and 
many of them, thank God, who do not live for themselves alone, 
who can delight in others' ]oj, who can feel for those who weep, 
who place the highest value upon those acts in life which have 
helped others, and are most ashamed of those which have benefited 
themselves alone. It is this that makes men human, and this is the 
earthly echo of the Divine words, " Let us make man in our own 
image." Who will say, then, that life is not worth living, when 
there is so much good to be done, so many joys to be shared, so 
many hopes to which the humblest can aspire? There is a justice 
in events after all. In this cold, cheerless weather the rascals are 
forced to stay in Canada, and the good fellows ride in their soft- 
gliding launches on the beautiful rivers of Florida. 2 

And when we look back with some regret for much of our youth- 
ful vigor, ever-ready appetite, invulnerability of stomach, and physi- 
cal endurance which now lie buried in the past, we are afforded as 
an indemnity the consolation that now we can look up higher than 
to those who ruled us then, and that many heartaches, disap- 

2 Whither his brother had gone because of his ill-health. 



Letters. 137 

pointments, and humiliations to which we were subjected then, 
have also been interred. We can rejoice that our manhood has been 
preserved to us, that there rests no blemish upon our names; we 
have each a wife whom we love, and whom we have been able up 
to this time to take care of, and who has had the strength to take 
care of us also, we have children in whose future our hopes are 
centered, and, above all, we love God and acknowledge His au- 
thority. Your brother, Aaron. 

Baltimore, December 28, 1887. 
My dear Harry, 

. . . I learned today . . . that , who has been 

elected as the successor of old at the temple in Philadelphia 

delivered an extraordinary lecture on Christmas Day, Sunday, 
which fell on the same day as " Asarah be-Tebeth " this year. It 
seems he made the coincidence the theme of his discourse, and the 
lecture was published in a Philadelphia daily. I have not seen the 
paper as yet, but should judge, from expressions which Dr. Szold 
used in reference thereto, that he must have said some outrageous 
things. These new-fashioned Eabbis are strange caterers ; they give 
the Jews Ttn [swine] and the Christians taffy. . . . 

Baltimore, December 31, 1887. 
This puts the finishing touch to the year 1887. How quickly 
these years follow upon one another ! ... It will not be long 
before we enter upon a new century, and then we will not hear so 
much of the enlightened nineteenth century, which so many fools 
take such great delight in talking about. . . . There is nothing 
new here except the New Year. It is the season to exchange greet- 
ings, to send and receive bills. Some pay them, while many pay no 
attention to them, unless they must. . . . 



138 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Baltimore, January 1, 1888. 
. . . Quite recently I attended a family . . . consisting 
of a husband and wife and seven children, who had been driven 
away from Bavaria because the husband was a Bussian, although 
he had lived there for many years, had married a German girl, and 
was pursuing the business of a baker, which . . . afforded a 
living for him and his family. And still some of our enlightened 
coreligionists delight in talking about the age of persecution being 
past ! They even erased everything from the prayer book that in- 
dicated the slightest displeasure with the general order of things. 
Why should we bewail our lot, when we are free, living in a free 
country, etc., etc.? That was, however, before the time when their 
race was taken into account when they made their applications for 
rooms in summer hotels. Let us hope for a better day to come, for 
that day when all peoples will feel more kindly towards each other, 
and for that day when we Jews will be as intensely Jewish in our 
prosperity as those were who preserved our religion and our race in 
dire adversity. . . . 

Baltimore, January 10, 1888. 

Your letter . . . was very welcome, and we all enjoyed its 
contents. Contemplating a Christian holiday in a Jewish family 
makes rather a sad impression on one who goes through such a 
scene for the first time. 

. . . Yes, these AufgeMarte claim to have made wonderful 
progress, simply because they don't do what their parents or kins- 
men did. I think we are not so badly off in this country after all. 
There is more of a common bond between us. We feel more satis- 
fied with each other, and, thanks to the generous American spirit 
that prevails, we are not forced either to give up or to conceal our 
religion to gain the respect of those with whom we have intercourse. 
It is this which has made the English Jew, and I firmly believe that 



Letters. 139 

an American Jew will be developed here very similar to him. Of 
course, it will take a little time. The Rishuth of the German 
is inveterate, and, contrary to what we expected, has not abated one 
jot with the enlightenment of the nineteenth century. If any 
change has been noticed, it is that this feeling has been intensified. 
The old Jew, who had to buffet with the world, expected hard 
knocks, and was prepared for them when they came. He had him- 
self and his religion to preserve, and he toiled faithfully and suf- 
fered bravely to do it. While his body was bent humbly before his 
enemies, his spirit remained erect, and when he was again within 
the sanctuary of his family circle, his manhood rose up within him, 
and he looked with contempt upon his persecutors. Moses Mendels- 
sohn thought that, as the Jews became cultured, the German Chris- 
tian would relent. He made a great mistake in thinking so well of 
the Teuton. I am sure I have no grudge against him on that ac- 
count. Who would not have erred in this regard, having met a 
Lessing ? That reminds me of what I once heard. Heine, I think, 
said, (hardly anyone else could tell truths like this one), in answer 
to what is so often claimed so proudly for Germany, the invention 
of the printing press : " Well, if one German did invent it, there are 
many millions of Germans who did not." It seems as if Providence 
specially created one Lessing in order to show by the example of one 
decent German how very mean the rest are. I can't help looking at 
the history of the Mendelssohn family as a drama constantly being 
reproduced on the Berlin stage where it was originally enacted. A 
poor boy, without even a language, finds his way into the Athens of 
Germany. Physically dwarfed, intellectually and spiritually a 
giant, he makes way for himself in paths no Jewish foot had been 
permitted to tread before. At first spurned, like every other Jew, 
even by the lowest of men, he was finally sought and valued as a 
friend in the learned circles of that time. Commended for his wis- 
dom and learning and nobility of character by all who knew him, 



140 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

he valued most in himself the fact that he was a Jew. What a hor- 
rible spectacle in this drama, to see children renouncing the religion 
of such a father ! Some even changed their names, so that in pre- 
senting the credential admitting them into refined society, it might 
not be discovered that he who first made way for them was a Jew, 
even though he bore the illustrious name of Mendelssohn. The play 
has been going on ever since. How many fathers have been for- 
gotten, how many names have been changed since then ! All for a 
mess of pottage ! Thank God, all the people in the world are not 
Germans, and all the Jews do not live in Berlin. It is very difficult 
to do what Mendelssohn did, and up to this time not one Jew has 
done it, but very many common Jews have been able to do what his 
children did. . . . 

Baltimore, March 25, 1888. 
This surely has been an eventful time in Berlin. . . . The 
old king, who had such a long and eventful reign, to whom it was 
accorded to unite dismembered Germany, has been called away. 
. . . It is a beautiful piece of history, Queen Louise, mortified 
and insulted by Napoleon, conjuring her little son Wilhelm to 
avenge her honor and the wrongs of Prussia. How great that little 
Wilhelm became and how nobly did he fulfil his task ! Verily the 
commandment was fulfilled, "Honor thy father and thy mother; 
that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God 
giveth thee." It is a great pity that Frederick III, who took so 
prominent a part in all the events which made the present empire, 
and who, though so close to his father, was never far from the peo- 
ple, should have death staring him in the face when power is 
placed in his hands. . . . 

Baltimore, April 8, 1888. 
. . . We drove through Druid Hill Park this afternoon, and 
had a most delightful time. It was a little cool, but a very fine 



Letters. 141 

afternoon nevertheless. The trees, at least some of them, are put- 
ting on their green coats, and the grass is springing up everywhere. 
We feel very proud of our park, firstly because it is beautiful, and 
secondly because it is ours. They are going to illuminate it with 
electric lights, and next summer, when the driving around the lake 
becomes most delightful, we shall not be driven home by the dark- 
ness. This is something very pleasant to think of, but when we 
connect it with the city taxes of $1.90 on the hundred, when they 
were but $1.60 last year, the prospect for next year is not very- 
bright for the tax-payers, bright as the electric light may be. . . . 

Baltimore, May 9, 1888. 

. . . You are all wrong about Schollen and Heine. Heine 
wrote of Schalet, schone Gotterspeise, and meant what we call Scha- 
let. ... I remember the thick bean soup to which they give 
this peculiar name of Schollen in Berlin. By the by, I heard the 
derivation of Schalet when I was in Berlin. You are aware that in 
olden times they had all sorts of devices for keeping the dinner 
warm. One was to place the pots, after they had been taken from 
the stove on Fridays, between feather beds, and keep them there till 
the time arrived for serving the meal on Saturday. Many French 
words were used among German Jews in olden times, so that Schctr 
let was derived from chaud lit.' . . . 

Baltimore, May 20, 1888. 

. . . The Belt, or at least a part of it, will be added to the 
city [of Baltimore] . We are determined to have a large city, even 
if we are forced to annex the whole of the Eastern Shore. . . . 

3 Other derivations are suggested in the Jewish Encyclopedia, Vol. 
IV., p. 255. 



142 Aabon Friedenwald, M. D. 

Baltimore, June 17, 1888. 

. . . Your congratulatory letter to our Silver Wedding formed 
one of the principal episodes of the day. We kept the matter very 
secret, so that no one outside of the immediate family knew any- 
thing about it. The children surprised us early in the morning 
with a beautiful pitcher, which we admire and appreciate very 
much. Your letter touched us deeply, and of course we felt your 
absence on the occasion very keenly. We look back on these 
twenty-five years with great gratitude for the many blessings that 
have been bestowed upon us. We have lived for each other. We 
thank God for His mercy. . . . 

Germany is a great country, but it is not the soil for political 
freedom, neither is it the land to develop character in the Jew. The 
prejudice of the Teuton against the Semite seems uncontrollable, 
and the backbone of the Jew in modern times has not shown suffi- 
cient strength to bear up against it. It seems when the German Jew 
gives up the cattle business and learns to speak German correctly, he 
longs to divest himself of his religion, his history, and his traditions, 
and willingly throws them into the bargain when he sells his old 
clothes. 

We have been reading a good deal in an excellent book on Heine 
by Strodtmann where this is painfully proven. Heine complains 
bitterly of the rishuth which he had to witness in a small place 
called Limburg, where he lived a short time. He says, among 
other things, that he has a dog, and the Christian dogs maltreat 
him because he belongs to a Jew. . . . 

And the good Kaiser [Frederick III], who spurned this fiend 
[of anti-Semitism] had to die! Every German Jew has a double 
reason to mourn. As a German, he must mourn that the best . . . 
of the Germans has been called away, and, as a Jew, he must mourn 
that the strong hand of protection which has been held over him 
has been thrust aside. . . . 



Letters. 143 

Baltimore, July 11, 1888. 
. . . I think specimens of [ungentlemanly professors such.] 
as you describe . . . are not rare in enlightened Germany. I 
may be mistaken, but it seems to me to be a country very favorable 
to the production of such . . . men. I have particularly no- 
ticed the proclivity of German professional men to abuse one an- 
other. It is not so difficult to turn out a scholar from a university, 
but there is something else required to produce a gentleman. . . . 

Baltimore, August 22, 1888. 
When this reaches you a new season will be very near or, per- 
haps, ushered in. It is the time of all others that loving ones yearn 
to be together. That happiness is again denied us. We shall think 
of you more than usually on that occasion, and we feel assured that 
your thoughts will be directed to us. Yes, a whole year has told its 
tale ! Thank God, we have been preserved to each other, and have 
much to be thankful for. Trusting in Him, we can look hopefully 
to the future. God bless you, dear boy, and grant you a " Happy 
New Year !" May you always have the courage and the strength to 
pursue the work that you have marked out for yourself, the courage 
and the strength to remain steadfast in principle and loyal to duty. 
May you always be able to work cheerfully and successfully. May 
you never lack encouragement in contemplating the future nor ex- 
perience in reviewing the past. . . . 

Baltimore, September 30, 1888. 
This has been an eventful day. The ceremony of laying the 
corner-stone of the new hospital took place at 3.30 P. M. A very 
large assembly marked the occasion. The Catholic hierarchy was 
present in full force and full uniform and conducted the exercises. 
All the Catholic Knights, Irish and German, Polish and Bohemian, 
with green, red, and white plumes and . . . shining helmets 



144 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

marched valiantly in line with floating banners and stirring music. 
Calvert Street presented one compact mass of human beings. The 
roof of the hospital was crowded with those who were anxious to 
see the wonder, and . . . could not be accommodated . . . 
below. The little Sisters with their saintly garb and innocent faces 
stood at their windows and overlooked things generally. The Cardi- 
nal, in his vestments of white silk, richly embroidered, Monsignor 
McColgan, in his purple robes, and then the priests of the third de- 
gree and numerous Brothers, who did not look half so fascinating 
as their Sisters who were peeping from the windows above, gave the 
required dignity to the occasion. The Mayor was also there in full 
life size, except when he took his hat off. The Mayor made an ad- 
dress; it was good, and it was short, and was especially well re- 
ceived by those (and these were in the great majority), who did not 
know how much he had done in his official capacity to prevent the 
very thing for which he had so many praises to-day. . . . Then 
the clergy did some chanting, which sounded very well, and this 
was followed by a short but very appropriate address by the Cardi- 
nal. . . . 

Baltimore, October 27, 1888. 

. . . As the presidential election is approaching nearer and 
nearer the feeling awakened by it becomes more and more intense. 
All sorts of speeches are made ; all sorts of lies are told ; all sorts of 
jokes are cracked. Of the latter I will forward a specimen. An 
Irishman was accosted by his employer, who said to him, " Patrick, 
you must vote for Harrison this time, otherwise your wages will be 
lowered." 

" Did you say my wages will be lowered if Cleveland be elected ? " 

." Yes, Patrick," was the reply. 

" You'd vote for him yourself, you know well you would, 

if his election would lower my wages !" . . . 



Letters. 145 

Baltimore, Nov. 4, 1888. 

. . . Everything is quiet here except politics, and that is at 
fever heat. . . . What is most enjoyable in the turmoil is that 
now and then we hear of a good rejoinder. . . . One such was 
published this morning. Blaine was making a speech, and some 
Democrat wanted to disconcert him, and tried to do so by saying, 
just as the speaker was warming up a little, " Oh, Jim Blaine, you 
goto 1" 

Blaine replied, " This is the first time in my life that I have ever 
been invited to Democratic headquarters !" . . . 

Baltimore, Nov. 10, 1888. 
. . . Since you have been away, a new election law has been 
enacted, despite the most strenuous efforts of the ring to prevent its 
passing the last legislature. We have glass ballot-boxes and a new 
registration every year. Thousands and thousands of dead men 
have thus been disfranchised. . . . Politics in Baltimore have 
assumed a new interest. The fight hereafter will be between the 
living; we shall not be haunted by the dead. The living that we 
shall have to fight may tax our best efforts, but it will be a consola- 
tion that the dead will be left at rest. . . . 

Baltimore, Nov. 14, 1888. 
... I have been accorded the honor of being elected a mem- 
ber of the Liberal Club, and last night I attended the first meeting. 
. . . The exercises consist of informal discussions of all sorts 
of subjects. Last night the principal topic was whether it would be 
well to adopt an educational test as a qualification for the franchise 
in the South. Mr. , a lawyer, a Democrat, and free- 
trader, fought against the proposition, and made it appear almost 
as if education were a great disadvantage. I listened to him very 
attentively, and weighed carefully what he said about people who 



146 Aaeon Friedenwald, M. D. 

were entirely illiterate, often showing very good judgment, and 
about college graduates often making fools of themselves, or using 
their education to fool others. I told a story I once heard Gundry 
relate. In olden times a respectable English farmer was reproached 
by a kind neighbor for not sending his son to school. 

"What, have my son taught to write and to read?" he indig- 
nantly replied. " I have learned a lesson in that regard since 

" (mentioning somebody's name) " committed a forgery. I 

will not have my son taught to practice forgery !" . . . 

We adjourned — and went to a restaurant. One rule adopted by 
the Club, with which I was immediately made acquainted, was that 
everybody paid his own reckoning. I suppose that is the reason it 
is called the Liberal Club. . . . 

Baltimoee, November 24, 1888. 

. . . Last Thursday night Julius and I, . . . attended 
the jollification at the "Young Men's Eepublican Club." . . . 
One old fellow about six feet two inches tall and weighing about 
two hundred and fifty pounds, who had just been elected sheriff of 
Howard county, the stronghold and home of Arthur P. Gorman, 
was one of the people who were present and rejoiced with us. He 
told us some very funny points he had made during the campaign. 
He said that, although he was not a college-bred man, he was not 
afraid to speak on the tariff issue. He said that the story was so 
plain that anybody who could tell the truth could tell it. Of course, 
college-bred men could talk free trade, but when they got through 
nobody could understand them. To illustrate his position, he told 
this story. A German was empaneled as a juror. He tried to beg 
off. 

" Mr. Judge," said he," I cannot shpeak English." 

" That is not necessary, for you have nothing to say. Can you 
understand ?" 

" Yes," said the German. 



Letters. 147 

The trial proceeded ; the German listened attentively all through 
the taking of evidence ; but, when the attorney began to plead, after 
listening to him for a while, he suddenly cried out, " Shtop a little — 
Mr. Judge, I can't understand that man ; you must let me off." 

" Oh, no ! I can't understand him either, and it don't make a bit 
of difference !" said the Judge. . . . 

Baltimore, December 17, 1888. 

. . .. Everything must look very lively now in Berlin. If the 

Jews take as much interest (in Christmas) as the s do, what 

interest must the Christians take ! This is something I cannot 

readily forgive the s for. The old people must have had a 

premonition of what these things led to when they condemned 
. . . every new custom with their almighty "DOJn npn." What 
a lack of character is displayed in this wanton exchange of old 
and time-honored customs, handed down from generation to gene- 
ration, for the customs of others, of others who have been our perse- 
cutors in the past, and are resuscitating their ancient enmity in the 
present. The word AufgeTcldrt seems to justify all this. Such 
Aufhldrung will apparently justify anything. Such reckless dis- 
regard of the loyalty that one owes his own people is worse than 
outright apostasy. What a want of backbone ! Oh, what a wholesale 
barter of a birthright for a mess of pottage ! ' Aufhldrung! ' How 
your name has been prostituted ! Does it not seem a just retribution 
that anti-Semitism was destined to be born in the very cradle of 
Aufhldrung and to receive its baptism there also ? The weapons of 
the anti-Semites were not directed so much against the steadfast Jew 
who clung to his religion, to his traditions, and to his national ties, 
as against the Aufgehldrter. 

. . . You allude to the educational test for the franchise and 
ask my opinion. I think that a man who demands the right to vote 
ought to have enough intelligence to exercise it safely. One could 



148 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

hardly claim that a man who could neither read nor write had suffi- 
cient intelligence to vote. On the other hand, it would be somewhat 
dangerous to pass a law in accordance with this idea. There are 
many who are intelligent who, if they had the power, would never 
give those who were without an education a chance for one. Educa- 
tion costs the state something, and that something those who can 
well afford to educate their children themselves would like to strike 
off the tax in so far as its benefits accrue to others. I can imagine a 
condition of society in which a privileged class would combine to 
prevent a large part of the community from being educated by the 
state. When the masses vote, whether they can read or not, they will 
see to it that an educational system is provided for them. In due 
time, almost everybody's children will be sent to school, and com- 
pulsory attendance will be established. . . . 

Baltimore, December 22, 1888. 
. . . A Eussian was brought to the Hebrew Hospital, suffer- 
ing from a gunshot wound. The ball could not be traced. No ran- 
dom probing was indulged in. A friend was very much concerned 
about the ball not being taken out. I explained the situation as 
well as I could. He still shook his head, and I finished by saying, 
" Es schadet nichts; ein Jude hann eine Kugel 4 vertragen." . . . 

Baltimore, January 27, 1889. 

Poor Patrick Mc has gone on his last spree. He took 

pneumonia, and died last Friday. Peace to his ashes ! He was a 
tempest-tossed individual. I shall miss him and his odd brogue. . . . 

Baltimore, February 24, 1889. 

Dr. was in town to-day, and held forth at the Temple. 

This formed the topic of some conversation." A good deal was said 

4 A favorite Jewish dish. 



Letters. 149 

as to what constituted a good preacher. A story was told of a young 
Catholic priest who, although noted for his learning, made a signal 
failure of preaching in the early part of his career. On one occa- 
sion, however, he did remarkably well, and, on being questioned as 
to how this came about, he said that he first preached his sermon 
in the fields to the cabbage heads, and it went well, and he then got 
in his pulpit and imagined his hearers to be cabbage heads, and it 
went well again. 

I inferred if there were not so many cabbage heads in 's 

audience, he would not be so much admired. 

Baltimore, March 3, 1889. 

. . . The National League of [Republican Clubs convened 
in Baltimore during the past week. ... I did not have time 
to attend any of their meetings, but as regards the banquet I 
was more fortunate. I was one of the invited guests and a member 
of the entertainment committee. . . . Mayor Latrobe was 
present and made a speech of welcome. . . . Mr. Goodloe, of 
Kentucky, made a fine speech, and in winding up paid his respects 
to the Mayor. . . . He said that he was very much pleased to 
have met the Mayor of Baltimore. It was very creditable to him 
that his hospitable nature rose superior to his party predilections. 
. . . He said he could not express what he felt regarding the 
Mayor better than by telling a story. 

" Two friends, the one a Eepublican, the other a Democrat, went 
into a saloon, where they found a man dead drunk, bespattered with 
mud, . . . lying in a corner of the room. Said the Democrat, 
' I'll bet you five dollars that fellow is a Eepublican.' 

" 'It is a go,' replied the Eepublican. 

" The fellow was aroused and they said, ' We have got a bet about 
you. Are you a Democrat, or a Eepublican ? ' 

" ' Well,' said the fellow, after rubbing his eyes, ' I have the repu- 



150 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

tation of being the biggest liar in the country, I have even been ac- 
cused of stealing, and you see I like whiskey. I have every symp- 
tom of being a Democrat, but I am a Eepublican/ Now, the Mayor 
has every symptom of being a Eepublican, but he is a Demo- 
crat." . . . 

Baltimore, May 5, 1889. 
. . . This afternoon . . . mamma, Julius, and I took a 
little drive in the park. ... It was the first time we have 
seen the dogwood in bloom this year. We enjoyed the " out " very 
much. The park looks lovely, and, from the very large number of 
people we saw there, it is certain that a good many others think as 
we do. The only thing we had to object to was that the Eutaw 
Street road leading to and from the park was not sprinkled and the 
dust was in evidence in uncomfortable quantities. We have a strin- 
gent Sunday law here still : no beer in the city, and no water on the 
roads. . . . 

Baltimore, June 16, 1889. 

Dr. and Mrs paid us a visit this evening, and they just 

left. The Doctor is very good company. He told me that A [his 

daughter] had remarked to [her sister] H that hitherto she 

could not altogether believe the account that the Bible gave of the 

Deluge, but since the Johnstown flood she could believe it. H 

told her father to talk to her on the subject. He did not reveal that 

H had said anything to him. At the table he referred to the 

Johnstown calamity, and said that when he first read the account of 
it in the papers he could not credit it, but he was reminded of the 
Flood in the Bible, and then he believed that the account was true. 
A looked very astonished, but said nothing. . . . 

Baltimore, June 26, 1889. 
In your last letter you speak of the Anti-Semitic convention that 
met at Bochum [Westphalia]. It is very painful to see these move- 



Letters. 151 

ments going on, and I agree with you that it bodes ill for our co- 
religionists in Germany. In a country where the people have their 
rights and are anxious to maintain them this could not happen. 
When a man becomes a voter, I mean a voter in the sense that we 
use the term in this country, he becomes a factor in the state whose 
rights cannot be encroached upon. In the first place, parties learn 
too well the importance of not giving offense to any special class of 
citizens, and, in the second place, people who have studied a demo- 
cratic government practically, realize that the precedent of any 
class being proscribed endangers the rights of others. The Germans 
have not studied freedom in this practical way, indeed they have 
not studied it at all. They have prated about it, but they have never 
approached the subject seriously. They feel uncomfortable under 
the present regime, and, as they can't right matters, they find some 
consolation in oppressing the Jews. They bear more complacently 
the kicks to which they are all constantly subjected because they are 
permitted to kick others. But this cannot last forever. I agree with 
you that it will be made very unpleasant for our people, but this 
will be only for a time. Popular government will eventually assert 
itself in all civilized countries, and where this prevails it will be 
impossible for any part of the people to have their rights curtailed. 
The trials through which our brethren will have to go will have a 
salutary influence also. It will open their eyes to their past un- 
worthiness. It will make them realize that they have been too 
willing in the past to barter their birthright for a mess of pottage. 
Desertion and conversion have lost their ancient horrors when [the 
deserters are] bribed with a little reward. How willing were many 
of the cultured or the so-called cultured to despise their brethren, so 
that they might escape being recognized as akin to them. There 
has never been a German Eothschild who, although sent year after 
year to Parliament, refused to take his seat rather than prove a 
renegade. And finally his manliness had to be recognized, but that 
11 



152 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

happened in England, and there are Englishmen there, Englishmen 
who know the value of liberty and can understand those who are 
striving for liberty. The Germans have never secured anything for 
themselves, and they cannot be generous enough to yield to others 
anything that they can withhold from them. What can you expect 
from a nation that has coined such a word as Schadenfreude ? . . . 

Baltimore, August 14, 1889. 
Yesterday the intelligence was flashed to us that Uncle Moses 
died at one o'clock. His sufferings were so great during the past 
week that we hoped that they would soon be at an end. And still it 
was a shock to me when the news came. Poor fellow, he had a hard 
lot of it these fifteen years, and yet he was so grateful for the little 
respite that occasionally was granted him. He was a good man in 
the true sense of the word. . . . He was a good brother to me 
from the beginning to the end. This I shall never forget. He un- 
derstood me when no one else in the family did. I shall cherish his 
memory. . . . 

Baltimore, November 20, 1889. 
. . . You are mistaken when you say that Baltimore is the 
worst governed city in the Union. Something similar to what we 
complain of exists to a greater or less extent in every large city in 
the United States. People are beginning to realize the injury it is 
doing, and they are bestirring themselves to remedy the evil, and it 
will not be so very long before their endeavors will be rewarded. 
Election laws are beginning to be improved everywhere, and this 
will eventually prove the downfall of bossism. I have great hopes 
that there will be a great improvement in politics in this country. 
I see such a very decided improvement over the condition of affairs 
when I was a young man that I am not so very much discouraged 
by the continuance of the evils we complain of today. The world 
is going ahead. . . . 



Letters. 153 

Baltimore, December 22, 1889. 
First of all let me thank you for your beautiful letter congratu- 
lating me on my birthday, together with the photographs of the 
Alt-Neu Schule which you sent me as a birthday present. I appre- 
ciated them very much, for they pleasantly recall to me my memories 
of Prague. It is no little satisfaction, when the years are being 
piled on one's back, and especially at the time when one begins to 
feel their increasing weight, to be surrounded by those whose love 
he has, and who show their willingness and readiness to make the 
load a little less burdensome if they can. Your affectionate words 
made a deep impression upon me, and, although you were not with 
us when the presents were spread out and the congratulations of the 
family extended in turn, and the egg-nog drunk, and the cakes 
eaten, and the nuts cracked, it seemed that you were not so far off. 
This birthday had one thing in particular to add to its good cheer, 
and that was that it pointed to the time, . . . not very far off, 
. . . which will bring you back to us again, and we can all be 
together. . . . 

Baltimore, December 25, 1889. 
. . . Last Monday night the new City Hospital was inaugu- 
rated. His Eminence the Cardinal was the most prominent figure 
of the occasion. The exercises were . . . quite imposing. 
The first address was made by the Cardinal, who spoke well, and 
his speech was well received. Among other things ... he em- 
phasized the statement that hospitals were the outcome of Chris- 
tianity. He stated that before the Christian era hospitals did not 
exist, that the Greeks and Bomans knew nothing about them, and 
that the word could not be found anywhere until it was coined by 
the Christians who built them. . . . The last speaker was Dr. 
Gundry, who represented the faculty. By some strange coincidence, 
he and the Cardinal both regarded it as important that the origin 



154 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

of hospitals should be touched upon. Gundry's touch, however, 
gave forth quite a different sound. He traced the origin of hospitals 
a little further back than did the Cardinal, and he found them 
spoken of among the Greeks and Eomans and other ancient nations, 
centuries before the coming of Christ. Gundry's contradiction must 
have startled the Cardinal somewhat and his friends also, but no 
offense could be taken, for so it was written in his speech, and he 
could not have been aware at the time of writing what cardinal 
error he would have to correct. . . . 

Baltimore, January 22, 1890. 
So you are now in Paris, with all that is great and beautiful and 
interesting in that great city before you, and all the charming recol- 
lections of your Italian trip behind you. I shall never forget the 
impression that Paris made on me when I arrived there, one night 
in 1861. The city appeared to me to be ablaze. Paris was in its 
glory then. It was the metropolis of a great Empire, and seemed 
proud of its Emperor. Napoleon III, then supposed great, was the 
master of France, and France willingly submitted to his dominion, 
for through him France had become the mistress of Europe. I re- 
member well a cartoon in a humorous paper which aptly represented 
the feelings of Europe toward the French Emperor at that time. 
Napoleon III was made to appear as a schoolboy, viewing a map 
that was spread before him, over which he had capsized the ink- 
bottle, with the result of causing a good many boundary lines to 
disappear, and chuckling, with his hands in his pockets and his legs 
in ... a strut, at the trick he had perpetrated. I did not ad- 
mire the Emperor much, nor did the French people make a very 
favorable impression upon me. I hope they have improved with the 
changes that have since taken place. They seemed to me frivolous, 
unreliable, and manifesting a strange aversion to telling the truth. 
. . . " Glory " was the watchword of the army, and carried its 




AARON FRIEDENWALD 
1891 









oleon 11 

QJAWH3Q3IFH HOflAA 

mire th< or nrach 

favorab) 

gee that have sir. 
unr. 



Letters. 155 

infection through the whole nation. It was looked upon as some- 
thing above everything else, no matter how it was attained or how 
short a time it could be held. A would-be savant would be satisfied 
to startle the world with a statement for the sake of the glory it 
would give him for twenty-four hours, even if he knew he would 
be branded as the biggest liar in existence afterwards. I believe 
that the very unexpected chastisement which they received from the 
Germans must have had a very salutary influence. It showed that 
what they had taken for granted, viz., that they were the greatest 
and the most powerful nation in the world, was a fallacy. ... I 
believe that, besides ridding the nation of an unprincipal usurper 
and restoring the republic, their defeat has been a good thing for 
the French in many other respects. . . . 

Baltimore, February 2, 1890. 
. . . I have not the time to follow up politics as closely as I 
formerly did. I am ashamed to say that there are many things go- 
ing on in politics that I am entirely ignorant about. I am, there- 
fore, forced to resort to a simple method by which I can judge how 
things are going. When the Democrats are crestfallen, and howl 
about injustice being done them, and seem much concerned about 
the safety of the Constitution, I am inclined to think that the coun- 
try is pretty safe. 

The following letter was written to Mrs. Jane Friedenwald, 
widow of his brother Moses. 

Baltimore, September 10, 1892. 
Dear Jane, 

The Old Year is paying its farewell calls, and we are getting 
ready properly to receive our unknown guest, the New Year. This 
new guest will be with us in weal and woe for the next twelve 
months. What a preacher would say on this subject ! What foolish 
things many preachers do say in this regard and still have to be 



156 Aabon Friedenwald, M. D. 

listened to ! I am no preacher, and therefore I am not required to 
say anything. I am very glad of it. I am sure you are, too. There 
is one thing, however, which I am permitted to say, and I will say 
it with all my heart. I hope that you will find the new guest a 
pleasant and agreeable one, that he will annoy you at no time, that 
you will never wish that he had never come, nor that his stay were 
soon over ; that, when he also will finally take his leave, you will be 
in the mood to say that you would be content to have all of those 
who may succeed him be just as he was. Now, if you know how to 
wish yourself anything better, just make out the account, and I will 
cheerfully sign it " Approved." God bless you all. 



CHAPTEE VIII. 
Trip to Europe (1895). 

In 1895 my father, accompanied by my mother, made a long- 
contemplated trip to Europe, spending three months in visiting 
England, Holland, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and 
France. He had not gone abroad since 1860, and, on being asked 
if he went to Europe often, he replied, " Yes, every thirty-five 
years." The following letters are selected from the extensive cor- 
respondence with his children which he kept up while abroad. 

London, June 11, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

Yesterday morning we " did " the Tower of London. When we 
approached the place of which we had heard so much we expected 
that it would speak for itself, and it did. The old grey walls and 
sturdy towers make a powerful impression upon one. . . . The 
" beef-eaters " in their uniform, the same as was worn in the time 
of King Henry viij (8th) (a fellow can't well rid himself of the 
habits of his trade) gave character to the scene. . . . 

London has changed very much since last I saw it. Some of the 
streets have been widened, and fine buildings of rare architectural 
effect now occupy the place of ancient rookeries. Many new public 
buildings have been erected, and nowhere have I seen such fine ar- 
chitecture 

The hall of the court is magnificent. The Judges and barristers 
in their wigs and gowns looked queer, but extremely interesting, 
and it was a grand sight to see the common people coming before 
the Court of Appeals and laying their cases before it in person. 



158 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

The Master of the Eolls, who, by the way, is the successor of the 
late Sir George Jessel, listened patiently and good-naturedly to all 
who came before him. A lady complained that she went to see 
Bothschild, but . . . could get no hearing from him, and that 
she wanted the will of Lord Beaconsfield probated anew, as he had 
made her his sole heir. The good lady evidently was laboring under 
some mental derangement. It was remarkable how patiently the 
Judge listened to the poor lady, how respectfully he asked her to 
tell her story, how amiably he put the questions, and how evidently 
pained he was when he said, " We can do nothing for you." 

I will have to draw a long breath before I can say anything about 
Westminster Abbey. It exceeds anything I could have conceived. 
I will wait until the morning, until I write more. 

London, June 12, 1895. 
Well, I have had a whole day to take that breath, and I am not 
prepared to give a description [of the impression] that the Abbey 
made upon me. It is a grand building, and the monuments of the 
distinguished persons who have been buried or commemorated 
here . . . must awaken an intense interest in even the dullest. 

Ostend, June 18, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

On the whole, London has made a very deep impression upon 
me, and the high opinion which I had hitherto held of England and 
the Englishman has been fully confirmed. I like the Englishman 
as a Jew, and I like him as an Englishman. There is such a sturdi- 
ness of character, a self-consciousness that distinguishes him that 
cannot fail to command respect. England is very old, but the na- 
tion does not show decay. Even without a big army and with big 
armies all around her, I feel that England has nothing 
to fear. . . . 



Trip to Europe. 159 

Mayence, June 23, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

Yesterday was appropriated to the Rhine. It was a glorious day, 
and, although we were going from 9.45 A. M., when we left Co- 
logne, till 9.30 P. M., when we reached Mayence, the day was not 
too long. The beautiful scenery that met our eyes on all sides, the 
majestic mountains that seemed to stand as guards of the silvery 
stream, the many castles and ruins that told their stories of olden 
times, and the curious legends that were read to us from the guide 
books and the equally curious comments that were made upon them, 
furnished us with a program not only sufficiently full to provide for 
a day's enjoyment, but making an impression which will last a 
lifetime. It is not to be wondered at that the Rhine is so dear to 
the German heart, and that the German nation has been willing to 
give so much of its blood for its possession. 

We took the train to Bonn, which is a short ride, because we were 
told that the scenery up to that city offered nothing of special in- 
terest. We had most excellent company, from whom we did nut 
part during an entire day. Mr. B., general passenger agent of the 
Fremont, Elkhorn, and Missouri Valley and Sioux City and Pacific 
R. R. of Omaha, and his wife, and an Irish Catholic priest, about 
thirty years old, formed our party, and we had a very fine time to- 
gether. The B.'s were typical Americans, intelligent, refined, and 
sociable. The priest was a " character," and he liked fun, knew 
how to take a joke, and told his stories in his rich brogue, which 
lent an especial charm to them. Later in the day a discussion on 

religious topics arose between Mrs. B and the priest, which 

was very interesting. They subjected the Father to a very rigid 
cross-examination, of course in a very courteous manner, and the 
priest from his standpoint answered without the slightest reserve, 
and no one who heard him speak in his simple manner and saw his 
good-natured face could doubt his sincerity. The priest is on his 



160 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

three-weeks vacation, spending some of the forty pounds which, 
together with his maintenance, form his salary, and seemed as 
happy as a boy on his first picnic. . . . 

Matence, June 25, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

. . . Yesterday . . . afternoon . . we saw the 

two synagogues, the one the Reformed, the other the Orthodox. 
They are well-built structures, but there is nothing striking about 
them. . . . The Reform movement has not gone to the lengths 
which characterize it in America. The Orthodox seem very intol- 
erant, provoked to a great extent, probably, by the irreligious con- 
duct of the Reformers, who, while they are comparatively moderate 
in the changes which they have introduced into the service, have 
fully come up to our American Reformers in their unobservant 
conduct, and are probably lacking in the generous interest in Jew- 
ish institutions which our Reformers have retained. . . . 

Wiesbaden, June 27, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

. . . [On our] trip to Worms we visited the synagogue and 
were deeply impressed. It must be nearly a thousand years old. 
It is built so that the women were provided for in an annex in the 
shape of the letter L. At the side of the synagogue is the " Rashi 
Kapelle." There are some fine pillars in the synagogue, the 
ceiling is rather high, and the old, finely-shaped lamps hang as 
they have hung these many centuries. There are two lamps con- 
stantly burning ... in memory of two men who, on the 
charge being made that the Jews poisoned the well, became mar- 
tyrs, saying that they were the guilty ones. There are some who 
still fast on the day commemorating the event, and Eaddish l 
is said for the martyrs. On the Almemar [reading-desk] are 

1 The prayer recited in memory of the dead. 



Trip to Europe. 161 

several prayer-books written on parchment many, many centuries 
ago, in one of which the prayers have been greatly curtailed be- 
cause, it is said, the congregation feared an assault at any moment, 
and it was considered wise not to remain in the synagogue any 
longer than was absolutely necessary. One of these prayer-books 
is in Eashi's Beth ha-Midrash; it is very finely illuminated, simi- 
larly to those seen in the British Museum and so generally admired. 
But just think of an organ having been placed in the synagogue 
made famous by reason of age arjd of having been the sphere of ac- 
tivity of one of the greatest scholars, if not the greatest scholar, 
. . . ever yet arisen in Israel! What would the world say 
if the house in which Shakespeare was born should be desecrated 
in a similar way? . . . 

Geneva, Ereb [Eve of] 4th July, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

Here we are in a most beautiful city, where everything looks 
bright, music and song fill the air, the beautiful lake lies proudly 
at our feet, the beautiful blue waters of the Bhone dash headlong 
on their course, and the graceful swans float proudly here and there 
and seem to say, "What would Geneva be without us?" 

. . . The country between Basle and Neufchatel is one con- 
tinuous . . . magnificent landscape. Towering mountains 
meet the eye on either side, and a beautiful little river follows us 
almost all the way. Sometimes the river disappears for a short 
time, and then suddenly announces itself again, as if to play a 
game of hide and seek. Wild flowers of the most variegated colors 
abound, and one never . . . gets tired of the grand panorama 
which nature offers. We have been quite lucky in always meeting 
good company, who seem to enjoy the great pleasure which we old 
people, as they think we are, get out of this big excursion of 
ours. 

. . . Some time before reaching Neufchatel we were met by 



162 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

the lake bearing that name. It was a beautiful surprise. It was 
an enchanting sight. Such a fine play of colors as this lake presents 
has a most brilliant effect. We, that is, mamma and I, differed a 
little about the exact color, mamma calling it blue, while I inclined 
to name it green. It won't do for co-voyageurs to quarrel, and so 
we compromised on either bluish green or greenish blue. . . . 

The site upon which Neufchatel is built has not been especially 
levelled. As we drove along the streets we had buildings looking 
down upon us as from the high hills, and away down in the valley 
the tiled roofs and high chimneys looked as if they modestly con- 
cealed what was below them. . . . 

Interlaken, July 5, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

Wherever people speak French they require an extra amount of 
outdoors to live in. This we found to be the case in Brussels, again 
in Geneva, and I have the same recollection of Paris. There are 
many cafes here, all having ample provision for guests who prefer 
eating and drinking in the open air. I noticed that here not only 
is a part of the sidewalk occupied in this way, as in Brussels and 
Paris, but sometimes the whole of the sidewalk is occupied, so that 
those who wish to pass are perfectly satisfied to walk in the 
street . . . 

Berne is a queer old town, and seems very true to its traditions. 
I found in the same old Barengrube the same old bears, that is to 
say, bears that looked much like those which were sought for by 
sightseers thirty-five years ago. Bears look very much alike any- 
way, and I did not go to the trouble to find out whether they were 
of the old or of a new generation. . . . 

Zurich, July 10, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

. . . When we arose last Sunday morning [at Interlaken] we 
received a most friendly greeting from the Jungfrau, robed in the 



Trip to Europe. 163 

purest white, and presenting a picture of grandeur and purity that 
will long be remembered by us. It was not without regret that we 
had to turn our backs upon this grand place. We took the boat on 
the lake of Brienz, and sailed smoothly over its beautiful blue 
waters, passing a number of small towns forming favored resorts. 
On either side we had the most sublime mountain views, and, look- 
ing back, the snow-capped mountains continued smiling upon us. 
These trips upon the Swiss lakes remind one very much of the 
pleasant traveling on the Ehine, the scenery here being even 
grander. . . . We reached our destination, at Giessbach, about 
ten o'clock. Here we saw the falls before leaving the boat. We 
walked up to the hotel, from whose veranda we got a full view of 
the Griessbach leaping from a great eminence, alighting lower, and 
then making another grand plunge, and so making three or four 
great leaps before reaching the bottom and finally diving into the 
lake of Brienz. . . , 

Berlin, August 6, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

. . . I visited Graefe's [his teacher's] monument and was 
deeply affected. The statue is lifelike; I imagined I could hear 
him talk. . . . 

The Hague, August 16, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

. . . In [Amsterdam] . . . the Portuguese and German 
congregations, as in every place else, form separate organizations. 
The original Portuguese settlers were very rich, and for a long 
time remained the wealthy part of the Jews of Holland. The Ger- 
man Jews now not only outnumber them, but are also much 
wealthier. The Portuguese lost their fortunes, but not their pride, 
although they are. now perfectly willing to intermarry with the 
Germans. 



164 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

The condition ... of Judaism in Holland is unique. 
Whatever private opinions may exist, there is a general acquiescence 
in the idea that the Judaism of Holland must not suffer from the 
inroads that have proved so destructive everywhere else. The Sab- 
bath is universally kept, and the dietary laws are everywhere ad- 
hered to. . . . 

Paris, August 20, 1895. 
Dear Children, 

. . . In The Hague ... on Friday evening I went to 
the German synagogue, a very fine . . . building, about fifty 
years old, where I found a very large congregation in attendance. 
. . . I again attended the synagogue on Saturday morning. I 
heard a very good Chazzan. There were two peculiarities which I 
noticed, namely the two hymns Shir ha-Yichud and Shir ha-Kabod, 
which are sung with us before Yigdal, were said just before the 
Torah was taken out, and another still more surprising peculiarity 
of the service is that the Kohanim "duchan," which they do with 
us only on Yom-tob. The attendance was so large that it was 
difficult to get a seat. The Dutch Jews are very conservative, per- 
haps more so than any of our people anywhere else in Europe. 
There is much Hebrew studied, and one meets with many who are 
Lamdanim [learned]. 

. . . On Monday morning, ... we took a carriage for 
the Eiffel Tower, and went up to the second landing and spent quite 
a time there inspecting the city through our opera glasses and a 
telescope that was in position on the platform. It was a grand 
sight. I recognized many points from my previous recollection of 
them. In driving out we passed through a very fine part of the 
town, and had the interesting buildings pointed out to us. Near 
the Eiffel Tower there floats over the Seine a balloon called the 
ballon captif, as it was captured during the Franco-Prussian 
war. Well, we saw more than its equivalent in Berlin. . . . 




AARON FRIEDENWALD 












I r 

ajAWHaaajjn hofiaa 
town, ^'> 



CHAPTEE IX. 
Oriental Trip (1898). 

A visit to the Holy Land, which had been the dream of my 
father's life, as it is the ideal of every pious Jew, was made by 
my parents in the summer of 1898. They proceeded by way of 
Gibraltar and Naples to Egypt and thence to Palestine, where 
they spent a month. Their route homewards passed through 
Greece, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, England, and Scotland. Ex- 
tracts from the letters written from abroad by my father to his 
children follow; a picture completer and in greater detail of his 
impressions of the land of Israel, however, is given by the two 
addresses which he delivered after his return, selections from which 
are reprinted in a later portion of this book. 

S. S. Aller, April 20, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . The Eeverend Dr. Collyer 1 invited me yesterday to sit 
beside him and we had a very interesting conversation on the subject 
of Zionism. He seemed much interested in what I had to say to him 
supplementary to my paper ["Lovers of Zion"], and asked me 
to send him anything I might publish as a result of my visit to 
Palestine. He is a Unitarian. . . . 

S. S. Aller, Friday, April 22, 1898. 
. . . The ship swarms with priests, Irish, American, Polish, 
and German. They are a jolly set. . . . Old men are con- 
spicuous here with young wives. They seem to me to have a feeling 
that they have made fools of themselves, and to want to go where 

1 The Reverend Robert Collyer, pastor of the Church of the Messiah, 
New York. 



166 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

they -won't be so much observed. There are, strange to say, a few 
Americans here, sedate, dignified, American. Plenty of Germans 
who seem to enjoy themselves and trouble no one else. Italians in 
the cabin who seem to be affluent and return for a while to their na- 
tive heath, while the steerage is composed entirely of Italians of 
the poorer class — among whom there are sixty-four who have been 
sent home by the immigration officers. 

Yesterday they tried to make us see something of the Azores, but 
few could make themselves believe that they did see what was 
pointed out. Last night we were told that we should come very 
near the Azores this morning, and so I got up before five and was 
immediately followed by mamma, and we were fully repaid. Cer- 
tainly it was a most picturesque scene. We had passed a number 
of the group during the night. The one which we beheld in all its 
glory was San Miguel. It rises abruptly out of the sea, presenting 
a bright green color, with undulating mountains. The city, which 
we saw, looked like a fairy spot. Every inch of ground seems to be 
in the highest state of cultivation. The panorama lasted fully two 
hours, which was a most enjoyable break in the general monotony 
of the voyage. . . . 

Gibraltar, April 25, 1898. 
We have done the town, and are now off for the ship. It was 
glorious. England is great, even out of England. . . . 

S. S. Alter, April 26, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . Our neighbor, the Armenian, who, every now and then, 
after sauntering away for a while, comes back aglow to dispose of 
a new story that he has heard, has nearly exhausted his resources. 
Many of his stories were old. . . . One, however, was new to 
me, and is worthy of preservation for a reasonable time. Here it is. 



Oriental Trip. 167 

A sign put up on a certain road was described by a German to an 
Englishman. It bore a notice that to the right was the road to a 
certain town, and, further, that those who could not read might in- 
quire at the blacksmith's opposite. The man who told the story 
expected, naturally, to get a laugh out of the Englishman's stolid 
features. What a disappointment ! The Englishman's face showed 
simply bewilderment. He could not see where the laugh came 
in. . . . Next morning the Englishman approached the story 
teller with glowing countenance, saying, " I see it now, it is a good 
joke. How the man would be fooled if the blacksmith were not at 
home!" . . . 

On Sunday, April 24 . . . there were services conducted 
by the Reverend Dr. Collyer. He has the reputation of being a great 
preacher. I was, therefore, anxious to hear him, and I heard per- 
haps the best sermon I have ever listened to. He is a master of 
his art, and what gave special merit to his wonderful effort was 
that he had the delicacy to realize the situation, and in the selec- 
tion and treatment oi his subject he gave what was acceptable to 
all, and what would have been suitable in any pulpit. He read a 
portion from Job as one part of the service, and then selected his 
text from the great poem, " Why is light given to a man whose 
way is hid." He portrayed the conditions of life, which are so 
full of inexplicable problems. He told a most beautiful story of 
his own experience, when he was a boy nine years of age, sixty-five 
years before, when he worked alongside of a poor woman, frail in 
body and suffering from disease, working thirteen hours a day to 
support herself and child, and praising God constantly for his great 
beneficence to her. This woman, he said, had been an inspiration 
to him through his whole life. I saw him next morning and 
thanked him for his beautiful sermon. I told him that I had dis- 
covered why he had become such a great preacher. 

" Tell me what you have to say," he replied. 
12 



168 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

" You worked in a mill when you were young." 

"What has that to do with it?" he said. 

' This," I said. " You spun your yarn before you became a 
preacher; others spin their yarns after they have become preach- 
ers." He enjoyed the joke. . . . 

. . . This has been a gala day. We landed at Gibraltar, 
drove through the town, and were permitted to inspect the greater 
part of the fortifications. Gibraltar, even from a distance, has an 
inspiring effect. A mountain of stone projects from the sea. . . . 
After what nature has done, one wonders no less at what man has 
accomplished. The winding galleries through this massive rock 
are a wonderful piece of engineering. It was an odd scene that we 
beheld in the streets. Donkeys, carrying immense loads up hills 
that are too steep for loaded carts to be drawn up, carry large re- 
torts of water, milk, and so on. We saw Moors in their native cos- 
tumes strolling through the streets. There are many shops, show- 
ing gaudy articles for sale. Moorish honey is offered for sale on 
all sides as a specially attractive thing. We passed a market place 
which the driver told us was the " Jew Market." I learned, on 
inquiry, that there are seven thousand Jews in Gibraltar, with two 
synagogues. There is a public garden here, with a profusion of the 
most beautiful flowers and tropical plants. The drivers say in very 
bad English that they are Englishmen, and seem proud of the con- 
ditions that obtain here. Are they sincere? 

Last Sunday the captain signaled as we were passing the coast 
of Portugal, and there came the answer, " No war." Gibraltar told 
us a different, though very meager story. . . . We know 

. . . that war has been declared. . . . There is consider- 
able enthusiasm on board. Last evening, during dinner, the band 
struck up the " Star-spangled Banner." The Eeverend Dr. Collyer 
rose, clapped his hands, and began to sing, and simultaneously there 
was a general uprising and a united chorus. 



Oriental Trip. 169 

Three priests sit opposite me at the table. The first is an 
Austrian German, fat, full of fun, knows all about beef steaks, 
good wine, where the best restaurants are to be found in New York, 
never misses a meal, and never makes the mistake of entering into 
a serious conversation. His ignorance on general matters is ap- 
palling. . . . His next-door neighbor is an Italian Austrian, 
who has been in America since 1864. He is jolly, has an enormous 
appetite, does not hesitate to proclaim himself an authority as to 
what things are the best (that is, to eat), does not talk on serious 
matters, although this is not because he is stupid, as is his neighbor. 
He is like many other priests on board, who are dumb as oysters, 
except when they speak of oysters and the weather. The third looks 
. . . very knowing, . . . never says anything, seems not to 
hear anything, except when some one does say something sensible, — 
which rarely happens, — when he gives a very significant nod of 
approval. He has, like the rest of them, an immense capacity for 
storing away . . . meats of all kinds, vegetables cooked and 
raw, and wine as if it were water, no, I mean as if it were wine, 
good wine. . . . 

I have enlarged my menu. I get, besides fruit, as on the last voy- 
age, baked potatoes, baked apples, and a cup of coffee. It is a feast 
for a king; that is, when a king is at sea and is of the Davidian 
dynasty. . . . 

Naples, April 28, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

We have just come to the hotel from the day's work, and we are 
both seated to continue the report of our doings up to this time. 
. . . It was a scene which I shall long remember, the scene 
which the early morning brought. . . . Such a noise as sound- 
ed in our ears from all sides I have never heard. . . . When 
I got on deck I found innumerable . . . boats surrounding the 



170 Aaeon Feiedenwald, M. D. 

steamer. There were a great many barges with coal which hun- 
dreds of men and boys were filling baskets with and dumping into 
the ship. They made an immense, and certainly a useless amount 
of noise in doing it. Boats came with families of mothers, sons, 
and daughters, playing various instruments and singing, and hold- 
ing their hats to catch the money that was dropped for them from 
our ship. Sisters of Charity came in their boat, and seemed per- 
fectly familiar with the saying, " The early bird catches the worm." 
Boats were there, to complete . . . this curious flotilla, bring- 
ing men and women who had things for sale. Then there were 
boats with solicitors for hotels. . . . Cook's men came among 
the earliest in their pretty little boat. When the tender took us 
off the ship to land us at Naples, a lot cf satellites fastened them- 
selves upon it, giving a sort of concert and then passing the hat 
around among us. But this confusion had a fairly speedy end, 
and ... in due time we were confronted by the custom 
house. The officials gave us no trouble whatever. They took our 
word that we had no cigars, and marked our baggage as passed with- 
out opening any of it. The most trouble we had was from a great 
number of men who were anxious to be of use to us, but we finally 
extricated ourselves and got a cab. One fellow squatted on the 
floor of the cab, with his feet dangling outside. We had to be a 
trifle discourteous to limit and finally to get rid of this undesirable 
sociability. We soon started for Cook's office, where we met a num- 
ber of our co-voyageurs. . . . 

We took a trip under their guidance to Vesuvius. It was a glori- 
ous trip, but quite different from what we had imagined it would 
be. We had heard so much of Cook's Bailroad to the summit of 
this great volcano that we thought after a very short drive we should 
be placed upon the train and we should be up in a jiffy. It was 
at least an hour's drive to the ascent, and it was a drive of fully 
two hours more up the mountain before we reached the station. 



Oriental Trip. 171 

Here we were hauled in good shape with five or six others up a very 
steep incline. Among the company there was a very droll . . . 
Englishman with whom I had a good deal of fun. He was amusing 
the rest with an account of how a cable on a similar car had broken 
and how the car had shot down, and how easily it could happen to 
us. He seemed somewhat disappointed that no one was frightened. 
When we had gone as far as this hoisting machine could bring us, 
we had to go further on foot. Here we were again met by a band 
of men with willing hearts and helping hands, and they became 
very angry when we declined to avail ourselves of their services. 
. . . I did not find the ascent very difficult, and did not puff 
at all when I reached the crater. It was a glorious sight to behold 
when we arrived. . - The crater is six hundred meters in cir- 
cumference. It is lined with a most beautiful and varied coloring 
from the deposits of sulphur in varied chemical states. There is a 
sound constantly given forth attesting the fact that here the pot is 
kept boiling all the time. The steam and smoke that issue from 
the bottom were wafted downwards by the wind, and the effect was 
not unlike that of a great cataract. 

Cairo, May 10, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . The voyage over the Mediterranean Sea from Naples to 
Port Said was a most delightful one. . . . When we arrived at 
Port Said about nine o'clock last Sunday, we had our first introduc- 
tion to Oriental scenes. . . . We took a stroll through the 
town, which is a comparatively new thing, conjured into existence 
by the Suez Canal. . . . Most of the Arabs we saw here were 
quite dark, and at home, if they wore Western costume, we should 
have very little hesitation in calling them negroes. . . . Is- 
mailia was reached in due time at six o'clock, and at seven o'clock 
[we took] the train for Cairo. The train kept close to the canal 



172 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

from Port Said to Ismailia, and for a good way after we passed 
Ismailia, how much, further I do not know, as darkness came on, 
and we had to content ourselves with looking at each other. As 
long as we could see, there was nothing but a vast desert that passed 
before us, sand, sand, and nothing but sand. Before we reached 
Cairo, however, we saw enough to show us that we were passing 
through cultivated and, as we have since learned, very fertile fields. 
We reached Cairo at 10.30 P. M., . . . and we were soon com- 
fortably quartered at the Hotel Khedivial, a very fine hostelry. 

On Monday morning we took a guide, who showed us the Citadel 
and the mosque of Mohammed Ali. We reached the Citadel, passed 
through the gate, and had the magnificent mosque before us. Up, 
up we went, turning and turning until we were a long way up. 
. . . The mosque is a most imposing edifice, and is constructed 
throughout of fine Egyptian alabaster. It is an immense building, 
and, although adorned with an immense dome, as well as several 
smaller ones, there is not a single pillar in the interior, showing 
that it is a fine piece of architectural engineering. There were a 
number of white-bearded Mussulmans squatting on the floor, re- 
citing the Koran aloud and, as we were told, by heart, with a Nig- 
gun [melody] in which I could readily have joined, ... al- 
most identical with some of our chants on holidays. In close prox- 
imity to the Mosque there is Joseph's well; we were led down to it. 
. . . No water appears at the bottom. We were told, however, 
that there was a turn from which the well went down much deeper, 
where there was a great deal of water. I did not know why it was 
called Joseph's well. I suggested to the guide that it was the well 
in which Joseph was thrown by his brethren, and he gave his wise 
approval. But, on reflection, I remembered that Jacob dwelt at that 
time in Canaan, and Joseph's well must have been in that territory. 
I found later on that the well received its name from another 
Joseph. . . . 



Oriental Trip. 173 

The fields are very rich. The wheat ... is thrashed by a 
most primitive method. It is strewn over the field, and a horse at- 
tached to something very much in the shape of a heavy sled is 
driven over it. The method of drawing water is also a very ancient 
one. A very large wheel having a number of receptacles in the 
shape of large jugs dips down into the water and is made to revolve 
by horses going round and round, which are attached to it by a 
simple mechanical contrivance. As the wheel revolves, the jugs 
bring up the water and empty it where it is wanted. 

This morning we took a trip to the Pyramids, starting at six 
o'clock. It was a fine trip. We crossed the Nile, seeing it for a 
considerable time as we drove along its banks. On the day before a 
party of Englishmen had been there and had been treated shock- 
ingly by the Arabs. Those who ascended had to make several bar- 
gains. They were not permitted to go further or to return until 
they . . . met the exactions of the Arabs, and they were thor- 
oughly fleeced. Those who entered to see the tombs amid darkness, 
except for the light of a candle, were surrounded by the villains, 
and the money was fairly taken away from them. The policeman 
seemed to be unable to enforce fair play. We have learned that 
these Arabs allow themselves to be beaten by the policeman, and af- 
terwards there is a division of spoils. ... So we decided to 
take revenge. We drove up to the Pyramids, walked all around 
them, walked up to the Sphynx, saw her from all sides, also the 
temple of the Sphynx and a tomb in the vicinity, excavated by some 
Englishman, and did not spend a piaster. ... It was very hot, 
certainly more than ninety degrees, and we were fairly at the mercy 
of the sun. . . . 

S. S. Orinoque, May 12, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . After returning from the Pyramids, we were conducted 
by our guide to the Museum. This contains a very large . . . 



174 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

collection of Egyptian antiquities, the most valuable in existence. 
I could not begin to enumerate all the remarkable things we saw 
there. But one thing we did see that is too important not to be 
mentioned. That proud king, who ruled over Israel with such an 
iron hand and defied Moses when he brought the divine message, 
has not escaped the archaeological resurrectionist. I saw him face 
to face, all his glory gone, submitting without a murmur to the 
scrutiny of all, the high and the low, — of the latter of whom there 
are not a few here. . . . 

Jerusalem, May 23, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . There is ... a very good school in this colony 
[Pethach Tikwah], modeled on the one in Jaffa, with one slight 
difference. In the Jaffa school, although it is under the control of 
the Russian Choveve Zion, the Sephardic pronunciation [of He- 
brew] has been adopted. Here the Ashkenazic pronunciation has 
still been adhered to, but from the general tendency, as I have 
noticed it, I should judge that the Sephardic pronunciation will 
eventually prevail throughout Palestine. The purpose of this move- 
ment is to make the Jewish population in Palestine as unified as 
possible; besides, the adoption of the Sephardic pronunciation does 
away with the variations among those who are known as Ashke- 
nazim, whose differences are illustrated by the wide diversity be- 
tween the pronunciation characteristic of South Germany, for 
example, and that made use of by the Jews of Poland. 

Jericho, May 24, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . One thing of great importance to note is the evident 
contentment of the colonists [in Palestine]. They have to work 
hard, and as yet have not succeeded by far in accomplishing what 



Oriental Trip. 175 

they set out to do, but they love Palestine, they love their work, 
they are full of pride at having surmounted . . . great diffi- 
culties, they are full of courage, and look hopefully forward to the 
future. . . . They are capable of the hardest physical work; 
of this their land gives incontrovertible evidence. They mount and 
ride the horse with agility equal to that of the native Arab. They 
are not wanting in physical courage, either. When the colonies 
were first started, the Arabs attempted to intimidate the newcom- 
ers, but they soon learned of their mistake. Many got a good thrash- 
ing, and they profited by the lesson. One [colonist] who was on 
horseback, was attacked by an Arab. He descended, thrashed him 
thoroughly, bound him hand and foot, and brought him on horse- 
back to Haifa for trial. Now the colonists have no difficulties of 
this sort. 

Jaffa, May 29, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . I was pleased with our visit to Jerusalem, notwithstand- 
ing the predictions that we should be dreadfully disappointed. It 
is a city of the most varied interest. The past is presented to one 
at every turn, and the present is not less interesting. There are 
as fine Jews here as can be met with anywhere. There is as much 
disinterested effort to benefit the lowly as at any other place. Those 
that have been painted in the blackest colors are better than the 
circumstances surrounding them would warrant [one in expecting] . 
And such a medley as is met with here ! Sephardic Jews are not 
all of one class; there are the Spanish-Portuguese, the Turkish, 
the Italian, the Moroccan, the Yemenite, the Kurdish, and the 
Bokhariot Jews. The German Jewish community is composed of 
real Germans, of Eussians from all the Eussias, Polish, Eoumanian, 
American, and other unclassified Jews. There are those who live 
in comparative luxury; many starve quite a little; and not a few 



176 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

live pretty well on nothing, their needs being so primitive and so 
few. ... I have not seen anything in all my travels to inter- 
est me as much as my trip to Jerusalem. . . . 

Zichron Jacob, May 31, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . I shall never forget the days that I spent [in Jerusa- 
lem] .... Our first trip was to the Wailing Wall. We passed 
through the Jaffa gate ... up steep inclines, through narrow 
streets, crowded with Jews of all kinds, Arabs, Bedouins, Euro- 
peans, donkeys, camels, and so on. Finally, we reached the place. 
Here we found a big crowd, largely composed of women, crowded 
up to the walls, kissing the stones, and weeping as if the destruction 
of the temple had happened but yesterday. There were a number 
of old men there also. The space is, I should judge, about thirty 
feet wide and one hundred and fifty feet long. All went well until 
I began to distribute the money I had brought with me for that 
purpose. The mob crowded around us, and it seemed that the same 
hands always managed to get to the foreground. . . . We had 
almost to use force to extricate ourselves from the crowd. The 
conduct of the crowd was annoying, but it was on the whole very 
interesting. The scene of some of them at prayer was very touch- 
ing. 

From the Wailing Wall we were conducted to the two great 
synagogues, the one of the Chasidim, the other of the Ashkenazim. 
Both are very imposing structures, and would produce a still better 
effect if they were not crowded upon by the very narrow streets. 
They both have very large domes and in this respect greatly re- 
semble the mosques. 

We next visited the Bikkur Cholim Hospital. . . . Here I 
saw Babbi Salant, who had an operation for cataract performed 
upon him. He was sitting up ; his bandage had been removed, and 



Oriental Trip. 177 

he said that he could see. He received me very kindly. He is a 
Eabbi of the old type. He has a very kindly bearing, and everyone 
shows him great respect. 

Our next stopping place was the Talmud Torah. . . . The 
rooms are all crowded with children, from the youngest up to those 
sixteen or seventeen years of age, besides the Yeshibah, composed 
of young married men. Such a Babel you cannot imagine. They 
have their books before them, and all shout away in tones indicating 
the especial intention of being impressive, with occasional inter- 
ruptions by the teacher. It is rather an odd scene to behold before 
you, boys of nine and ten years with a big folio of the Talmud be- 
fore them, giving their views on the subject-matter. The teachers, 
as well as the scholars, have a sort of starved look about them. 
While one must wonder how so much can be forced into the heads 
of these boys, one must regret the absolute absence of method. 
. . . The Sephardim have a school of pretty much the same 
sort, I was told, but I did not find time to visit it. . . . 

In the afternoon we visited the tombs of the Kings, a most re- 
markable place. The tombs are composed of large caves leading 
one into the other, some very extensive, situated only a short dis- 
tance outside of the walls of Jerusalem. Some of these caves are 
for one and some for two tombs. At the entrances of the various 
caves there are little niches in the walls for placing lamps, and 
above and below, at the side of each entrance, there are depressions 
in which the stone doors swung. 

We next visited the Lamel school, which is in charge of Mr. Eph- 
raim Cohen. Mr. Cohen is an able scholar, and a very fine fellow. 
A native of Jerusalem, after getting a thorough Hebrew training 
here, he spent some years ... in London (Jews' College), 
and in Germany. He knows many languages well, and knows how 
to conduct a school. This school was founded by the daughters of 
Edler von Lamel, who lived in Vienna. There was not enough 



178 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

money left, however, for the full and continued support of the in- 
stitution, and therefore a committee was formed in Frankfort on 
the Main, which looks after it, and also supports an orphan asy- 
lum. . . . The school is in a very modern building on the out- 
skirts of the city, and Hebrew, English, German, and French are 
taught by a corps of efficient teachers, after the most approved, mod- 
ern methods. This school is under a Cherem [ban]. That is to 
say, it was put under the Cherem by the dominant Rabbis when 
it was begun, and the present ones say they are forced to respect 
that action. They don't object now, so they say, to children study- 
ing anything but Hebrew, but they do object to this school, which is 
under a ban. Very few Ashkenazic children are to be found in the 
school on this account; the children are predominantly Sephardim. 
The Sephardim, as it appears, are much more liberal than the Ash- 
kenazim. The Ashkenazic Rabbis have immense power. When 
anyone rebels against their authority, his Chalukhdh is with- 
held. The Sephardim occupy a different position. The Chaluhkah 
is not so big an affair with them ; that is to say, the sum of money 
sent to Jerusalem is comparatively insignificant beside the amount 
received by the Ashkenazim, and it is said that the rank and file are 
very little concerned about it, as the Rabbis get nearly all of it. 
There is, therefore, much more poverty among the Sephardim; 
. . . but their needs are not so great as those of the Ashkenazim, 
as they have adopted the very simple mode of life of the Arabs. 
They have lost their pride and are extremely humble. 

On Friday, May 20, our first visit was to the Eeneseth, the 
part of the suburbs upon which houses for the poor have been built 
by various bequests. We were shown two one-story stone houses 
having one large room and a kitchen adjacent as those erected with 
Grandfather's legacy. Tablets are placed in the rooms of each 
house, stating the name and date of death of the donor. The fami- 



Oriental Trip. 179 

lies seem very happy because of the privilege granted them. I have 
copies of these tablets and also photographs of the homes. 

We drove next to the base of the Mount of Olives, a most beautiful 
mountain, separated from Jerusalem by the valley of Jehoshaphat. 
A large part of the base of the mountain is the Jewish place of 
burial. The graves are of very early date, and the place is still used 
as a cemetery. We rode up on donkeys ; it was our first experience 
on them. The ride was not difficult and the trip was very inter- 
esting; from the summit one obtains a very good view of the city of 
Jerusalem. The Eussians have secured possession of the summit 
and have built a church there. Next to it is a very high tower which 
I ascended. There are many olive trees all the way up the moun- 
tain and all along the route leading to it. 

Damascus, June 4, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

I left off in my last letter with our return from the Mount of 
Olives. From the summit of this mountain and especially from 
the top of the tower (which is reached by over two hundred steps), 
I had a very good view of Jerusalem and its surroundings. It is 
an imposing scene. There the city stands on Moriah and Zion, 
surrounded by its beautiful wall, encircled by beautiful valleys on 
all sides. No other city makes such an impression upon one. All 
nations turn to her as having an especial interest. What a history, 
that of which she has been the inspiration and the witness ! How 
much blood has been spilt in her defence, how many tears have 
been shed and are now being shed at her ultimate humilia- 
tion !.-... 

On inquiry, I found that the large synagogues in Jerusalem are 
not well attended on account of the many small synagogues and, 
besides, because the services offer no especial attraction. There are 
no good Chazzanim here. There is a small synagogue attached to 



180 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

the hotel, and I found this very convenient, inasmuch as the serv- 
ices begin at 6.30 A. M. Mr. Kaminitz, the proprietor of the hotel, 
read the prayers very acceptably. . . . 

There is one gentleman at the hotel whom I must not forget to 
mention, a Mr. Dunn, an Englishman, and a fine man through and 
through. He is a Christian, and is in the service of Mrs. Finn, an 
Englishwoman, the widow of a former consul at Jerusalem, who 
for fifty years has given a number of poor Jews employment by 
the expenditure of a very large fortune. At one time she nearly 
impoverished herself in this benevolent work. It has been alleged 
that she is inspired by missionary purposes, but no one can state any- 
thing definite as to that, and those connected with the work have 
always denied this. . . . 

In the afternoon I went, in company with Mr. Cohen, to hear a 
Mr. Yellin deliver a lecture in Hebrew on Hebrew poetry. He had 
a very large and very appreciative audience. Mr. Yellin is a Jeru- 
salemite, who received all his education here, and is a great scholar 
in Hebrew, Arabic, and other subjects, being so considered by Dr. 
Schechter. He is one of the teachers in Mr. Cohen's school. 

There are here quite a respectable number of intellectual Jews in 
the modern sense of that term. The library is a fine building with 
fourteen thousand volumes, and is much needed here. . . . 

Sunday, May 22, . . . was the day assigned for Hebron. 
We started early in the morning and reached this ancient city after 
a very dusty ride of five hours. There were many . . . trees in 
the country through which we passed and many vineyards, with the 
largest bunches of grapes I have ever seen. The city is very old and 
looks it. The streets are very narrow and these narrow streets lead 
one into the other through what are called streets here, though they 
are no more than three-foot alleys. Some of the streets are cov- 
ered, with a small place left open here and there for illumination. 
Here the shops are to be found; they are very small rooms, not 



Oriental Trip. 181 

larger than six by eight feet in size ; . . . many are devoted to 
trades, being the workshop and the salesroom at the same time. It 
is a motley scene. . . . Through these small streets there is 
a constant stream of pedestrians, donkeys, and camels, some heavily 
laden, some free from burdens. It is rather curious how these 
people here have utilized the . . . camel to carry loads from 
place to place. No one would know how to go about it with us. 
They can put almost as much, if not as much furniture on a camel's 
back as we can put in an ordinary furniture wagon. You would 
be astonished to see such an animal conveying a large number of 
building-stones from place to place. They seem not to know the 
need of wagons; and, indeed, some of the roads through which 
these animals pass are impassable for wagons, and, as for the small 
streets here and in Jerusalem, a wagon could not enter them. The 
object for which Hebron is especially interesting to sight-seers is 
the graves of the Patriarchs. They are contained in the mosque 
which has been built over the site, but they are strictly guarded 
from the approach of either Jew or Christian. There is a large 
stone stair leading up to the mosque, but none but Mohammedans 
are permitted to ascend higher than the seventh step. . . . 
Here, in the side of the wall, is a square hole, about eight inches 
square, through which ordinary mortals are permitted to look and 
see nothing. On ascending an incline leading to another side of 
the mosque one can look down and see separate structures which 
are said to be the several burial places. They are small buildings 
with domes. . . . 

This is a place presenting the intensest forms of both intellectual 
and material poverty. The offers of the Alliance Israelite have been 
persistently refused. The people here look upon all modern meth- 
ods as dangerous innovations. The representative paid me a visit, 
and I gave no advice, for I found that nothing is taken but cash. 
Of course, I gave a donation. The Hospital, quite a good build- 



182 A aeon Feiedenwald, M. D. 

ing, already finished six years ago, stands empty. It is much needed 
here, both for the people of the city and for the benefit of poor in- 
valids who come here from Jerusalem and other places, for this is 
considered a most salubrious climate. There is much diplomacy 
in vogue here. You can get no definite information as to why the 
hospital has not been opened. The Doctor intimates plainly that 
there is something wrong, but, when he is asked about it, his tongue 
and larynx seem suddenly to become paralyzed, and this is accom- 
panied by a reflex, convulsive movement which draws both shoul- 
ders up. When I found that they could not say why not, knowing 
that money had been collected during these six years, I suggested 
as an explanation that the money intended for the sick had been 
appropriated by the well. They pretended to be greatly shocked, 
but the recovery was too rapid for the shock to have been real. I 
told them that, when I came back, I should have to say that the 
hospital in Hebron for which agents have been collecting money is 
a simple pretence. We were shown a place which, it is stated, is 
the grave of the prophet Jonah. We could not stay long in Hebron, 
. . . and, after seeing all that was of interest, we started to re- 
turn to Jerusalem. 

Among other things on the road, we were shown the Grotto of 
Zechariah, to which the prophet is said often to have retired. When 
he returned to the people, he preached his inspiring sermons. If 
only some of the modern Rabbis would have such grottos to prepare 
their sermons in, and would remain in them, if they did no better 
than they generally do ! I would volunteer as one of the ravens to 
bring them sustenance. 

The next object of interest that we came up to was the pools of 
Solomon, three in number. They are large, square reservoirs of 
pure water. They formerly furnished a liberal water supply to 
Jerusalem, carried through earthen pipes which are still to be seen. 
In addition to these pipes there are the ruins of the ancient aque- 



Oriental Trip. 183 

duct. All this could be restored for a relatively small sum of money, 
and yet Jerusalem is left suffering for water. . . . 

Nearer to Jerusalem we came up to the tomb of Eachel. There 
is an appropriate building erected over the grave, and it is one of 
the few monuments in the possession of the Jews. We waited some 
time for the shammash [beadle], and in the meantime I said 
the Minchah [afternoon] prayer. . . . 

We started out on the morning of May 23 to inspect the Alliance 
schools. They are entirely satisfactory, both as to the buildings 
occupied and as to the instruction given. Here again we notice 
the influence of the bans. The Ashkenazim furnish but a very 
meager contingent of scholars. We saw the male and female de- 
partments. . . . There is quite a medley of nationalities in 
these schools, Sephardim, a few Ashkenazim from Jerusalem, chil- 
dren from various towns in Palestine, from Aleppo, from Persia, 
from Bokhara, and a few Yemenites. In the girls' schools there 
are quite a number of Ashkenazic scholars. The Jerusalem com- 
munity makes no provision for the education of girls, evidently on 
the ground that they need no education, and also because the influ- 
ence of the modern methods of education would be less harmful to 
the girls than to the boys. . . . 

We next visited the Moshab Zekenim, the " Old Men's Home." 
There is no " Old Women's Home." * There are plenty of old 
women, nevertheless, but women seem not to have the same claim 
upon either education or charity that men have. There are about 
fifty inmates, all old men, who seem contented and pass away their 
time bending over the Talmud and saying prayers. It is a good 
institution, and needs and ought to receive adequate support. . . . 

In the afternoon Mr. Cohen took me to see the Chacham Bashi, 
the Chief Eabbi, a most venerable man, very dignified in his bear- 
ing, and at the same time kind and courteous. He had coffee served 

1 At present there is an " Old Women's Home." 
13 



184 Aaeon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

by his liveried attendants. He asked me for nothing, and promised 
to call upon me at the hotel. I stayed till it was announced that 
it was time for Minchah, . . . and I accompanied the Kabbi 
to the synagogue in his house. . . . 

We next went to the quarries of Solomon, which are entered 
through a comparatively small opening in the rock. On, on we 
went, each holding a lighted candle, from chamber to chamber, 
until we were tired out. One must be very careful not to lose his 
way, and for this reason from time to time a candle is placed some- 
where on the rock. . . . From here the stone was procured 
for building Solomon's Temple. 

Eeturning from the quarries we went to Jeremiah's Grotto, which 
is entered through an opening in the rock, nearly opposite to the 
quarries. It is in the hands of the Moslems. It is quite a large 
chamber which, at a push, in this climate, would provide a com- 
fortable home for anybody. 

Early in the morning of May 24, that is, at five o'clock, we were 
off for Jericho, a five hours' drive. It was very hot when we got on 
the road. We passed through a picturesque, though barren country, 
with mountains all the way. We were accompanied by an armed 
Bedouin on horseback, besides our guide. This is considered neces- 
sary for safety here. We arrived at about eleven A. M. at the Jor- 
dan Hotel in Jericho, . . . and had lunch served in the open 
air, for it was intensely hot. After resting several hours, we drove 
to the Dead Sea, a drive of about an hour and a half. It was hotter. 
It was a grand scene, however, and we were not inclined to leave it 
so soon. I took a bath in the sea. It was a curious sensation. I 
could not sink deep enough to swim comfortably. The saltness is 
so intense that my face smarted for a considerable time after I got 
out. We returned to Jericho and put up for the night, but such a 
night! It was too hot to cover up and there were mosquitoes by 
the millions. The " hot time in old town " would give a man a 
chill alongside of this experience. I bear the marks of the fight still. 



Omental Teip. 185 

We started for Jerusalem on Wednesday morning at five o'clock, 
and reached Jerusalem safe, under the circumstances. On the way 
to Jericho we were shown Elijah's Grotto, and also a number of 
caves, now inhabited by a company of hermits who never leave their 
haunts, but have their food brought to them. This is the land of 
fanatics, and every religion furnishes its quota. They have a pe- 
culiar way of measuring one's love for his religion, and that is by 
the degree of hatred with which the respective individual hates 
everybody who does not hate in partnership with him. 

On Friday ... we went to the Tomb of David, which is 
within the walls of the city, and in the hands of the Mohammedans. 
The structure erected is quite appropriate. I saw an old lady recit- 
ing a portion of the Psalms. What could be a more fitting tribute 
to that great man! . . . 

On Saturday . . . there came a party of Egyptian Sephar- 
dim, who come every year, as we were told, to be " Oleh la-Regel," 
that is, to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, in imitation of the three 
pilgrimages annually of olden times. By the by, this is a custom 
which is largely followed by the colonists, and from all indications 
it will . . . assume considerable proportions before many 
years. These Egyptians, like ourselves, are embraced in the cate- 
gory of Jews " chuz la-arez" that is, those whose homes are outside 
of the Holy Land. Therefore their service was that of the second 
day of Yom-tob. They had their own Chazzan and their own 
Sefer Torah, which is incased in wood, and stands upright when it 
is being read. 

After service I took a long walk . . . and visited the homes 
of a settlement of Yemenites in one part of the city. . . . 
These poor people came from Yemen, or Teman, as it is also called, 
to escape the terrible persecutions they were subjected to thirteen 
years ago . . . They were not permitted to land at Jaffa. 



186 Aakon Friedenwald, M. D. 

They were sent from place to place, suffering from hunger, and, 
what was worse, they had to meet the animosity of the Jerusalem- 
ites, who used all their influence to keep them out of the Holy Land. 
They finally reached Jerusalem, settled upon the vacant places, and 
begged when they could not get any work. They are still very poor, 
but they have houses to live in, and, as their mode of life is very 
simple, they need very little, and perhaps get on better than other 
poor people. Some have saved sufficient money out of their meager 
earnings to buy homes for themselves. ... A very rich Yem- 
enite who lives in Aden built them a building of great size, in 
which a large number of families find shelter. Another group 
gathered old boxes, tin, and other stuff and erected houses of a sort, 
and when they have enough to eat they are very contented. They 
have built up a kind of suburban city, and paved the streets them- 
selves with cobblestones. They have no floors ; the bare earth serves 
them very well. For five or six months in the year there is no rain 
at all, and so they can manage. I saw their Sabbath dinner; it 
was very meager indeed. But they are frugal, and their deeply re- 
ligious nature makes them very grateful for what they have. They 
are good workers ; there is no work too hard for them. I have seen 
them at work cutting stones, carrying on their back heavy stones of 
a weight that would make our hod-carriers at home stand aghast. 
Some of them find employment in the colonies, and their work is 
so satisfactory that there is some talk of establishing a new colony 
for them. 

What is especially of interest concerning them is that, although 
separated as they have been for many centuries from the rest of the 
Jewish people they have fully preserved their Jewish character 
in every respect. They all speak Hebrew, have many Talmudic 
scholars, and are extremely devout in their religious practices. I 
saw one of their prayer-books, and it differs very little from our 
own. They have the characteristic Jewish features ; they are, how- 



Oeiental Teip. 187 

ever, somewhat dark. It is very peculiar and ethnologically of great 
interest that they all wear "peoth " [ear-locks]. On Yom-tob they 
had their entire head shaved, but the " peoth " were not touched. 
The " peoth" therefore, seem to be a very old institution, and they 
are now by no means to be regarded as introduced by the Polish 
Jews. 

I visited a number of their houses. They have no furniture. 
(They are not the only people in the East who have no needs of this 
kind.) The floor gives them a resting place when they sit, and a 
simple pallet a good bed at night. I found them engaged in teach- 
ing Hebrew to a number of little children whose parents were Per- 
sian Jews, of whom there are quite a number here. The teacher sat 
upon the floor, and the little children sat on the floor likewise, in a 
semicircle. Much more efficient instruction was imparted here, I 
feel sure, than in many places where things look much more suitable 
for the purpose. In one house to which I went I found a very hand- 
some man about sixty-five years of age who had just finished his 
Sabbath dinner, which was contained in a single dish, from which 
the whole family had partaken. He offered us some Kummel and 
some watermelon seeds, which had been roasted and salted, after 
the fashion prevailing among us in preparing almonds. This set- 
tlement, from the way it was constructed, has been called the " Box 
Colony." 

I have had a number of delegations visiting me. Chief Eabbi 
Salant, of the Ashkenazim, being a patient in the hospital, sent me 
by two Shammashim, a few days ago, a large decanter of wine 
and a very large cake, with his compliments, and later on he sent 
his whole committee, of which his son is a member. His son looks 
almost as old as he does. We had quite a talk about the ChalvMcah, 
in which they listened very respectfully to my suggestions. . . . 

A large party from the hotel went to see a model of the Temple 
made by one Dr. Schick. He came to Jerusalem many years ago 
as a carpenter, developed into an architect of note, and finally wrote 



188 Aabon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

a book on the construction of the Temple, which won for him the 
degree of Doctor from a German university. To do the work he 
studied Hebrew, studied the Bible and Talmud carefully in associa- 
tion with scholars, and finally constructed the model, which repre- 
sents both the first and second Temples. It is certainly a master- 
piece. He has also a model of the Tabernacle. Dr. Schick has re- 
tired from active work, but his son-in-law thoroughly explained the 
model to us. It certainly was a treat, and the model will always 
remain vividly in my memory. 

Beyeout, June 9, 1898. 
Deab Childben, 

. . . I left off in my last letter with bidding adieu to Jeru- 
salem. I felt as if I had parted with a dear old friend whom I 
should never see again. There are so many memories clustering 
about her walls, there are so many conditions in the present 
that call for the deepest study, and which one who knows 
them would like to watch the development of from time to 
time. There is a certain new life which has awakened in the 
old city. The colonies . . . have already had an influence on 
thought and conditions, and the aspiration has awakened, at least 
among the younger generation, to enter practical life. 

We left Jerusalem at about eight o'clock A. M. for Jaffa. . . . 
There was quite a gathering at the depot to see us off. Ephraim 
Cohen, Mr. Yellin, L. Griinhut and his daughters, and the two 
Bergmans, with their four " peoih," were all there. We met a Mr. 
Yaron, an official at Bishon le-Zion, who is an intense Zionist, and 
with whom I talked about the colonies, of the struggles through 
which they had gone, of what had been learned in regard to the cul- 
tivation of the land, and other . . . things, so that the journey 
was not a monotonous one. ... I find that my impressions 
about the Herzl movement have been correct. . . . The colo- 



Oriental Trip. 189 

nists, and all those outside of them here who wish for their pros- 
perity, see no good in Herzlism. In the first place, they look upon 
it as a great parade without any practical results. Moreover, since 
the Herzl demonstration the Turkish government has redoubled 
its vigilance, and it is now impossible for a Eussian Jew to enter 
Palestine. It is regarded as an idle dream to build up a Jewish 
state in the artificial manner which Herzlism has proposed in its 
program. What people here want, and hope to see in time, perhaps 
a very long time, is the development of a large Jewish community 
right here, of natural growth. No state could successfully be built 
up with a large number of Jews coming together helter-skelter. 
Moses' experience with his people in the wilderness is fraught with 
great practical suggestions for the future of the Jews in Palestine. 
The only thing that is really good about Herzl's Zionism is that 
it has brought him and others like him back to the fold, and has 
given a decided setback to those who were fond of dreaming of as- 
similation. ... 

The Arabs are good workmen. They shape stone into all forms, 
polish marble, and lay stone floors very beautifully. There is much 
use made here in the East of a very smooth red tile to lay floors 
with. It is very cool and clean, and looks well. The Arabs all 
make good servants, and they do all the work about the house. One 
never sees female servants in the hotels. The Arabs are a hard set to 
deal with, and one never deals with them without feeling that one 
has been cheated. They quarrel with each other all the time, or do 
something that has that appearance. On riding up the Mount of 
Olives our donkeys were in charge of two little boys, not over eight 
or nine years of age. . . . They cried out something which 
they often repeated, and, on inquiry as to what it meant, I was told 
that the boys were cursing the father of the donkeys, and learned 
that it was a co mm on habit among the Arabs, when one was dis- 
pleased with man or beast, to curse his father. . . . 



190 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Constantinople, June 16, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . I heard a few dogs bark this morning, and wonder what 
has been up. All those we saw, on passing through the streets, 
were asleep. I have heard on board the ship that these dogs have 
their special districts which they jealously guard. Our very com- 
municative German chambermaid confirms this statement. When- 
ever an indiscreet one oversteps his boundary, he will be met by an 
army of observation, which will be strong enough to enforce the 
boundary laws of dogdom. A still more curious principle which 
the canines of Constantinople enforce is that when a stranger, that 
is, a dog from some other city, is brought to the city, he is accorded 
the freedom of the town, and no other dog would be mean enough 
to be guilty of a breach of courtesy towards him. The dog here be- 
longs to the district in which he is born, and in the Moslem portion 
of the city they are kindly cared for. Every dog has his day, it is 
said. The dog in Egypt has had his. There are no dogs in Cairo 
now, although formerly the race held as proud a position there as it 
can now justly boast of here. But the English Lion came, and 
wherever the English Lion wags his tail, the tail of the dog approxi- 
mates humbly to other parts of his body, which betokens neither 
courage nor hopefulness. The dog of Contantinople has his day 
still, and he is to be envied for his evident consciousness of security 
from all harm. . . . 

Our guide was promptly on hand at eight A. M. to-day, and 
we started on round and alighted at the Museum. The sarcophagi 

. . . are a most interesting collection, and some present a 
coloring that is unique. . . . One formed the last resting place 
of one Abnit, King of Babylon thirteen centuries B. C, and is re- 
markable, clearly exhibiting Egyptian art. The inscription furn- 
ishes the explanation for this. The King states that he bought this 
sarcophagus, conjures all to leave him at rest, and gives the sol- 



Oriental Tkip. 191 

emu assurance that there are no jewels within. He apparently told 
the truth, for no jewels were found when the sarcophagus was 
opened. Time makes a great deal of difference as to many things. 
What is here termed archaeology, when consummated somewhat 
earlier is termed grave robbery. Another very fine sarcophagus is 
that of Blene (Helena)), the mother of Constantine. It is a master- 
piece of art, representing the lady in eighteen different attitudes, 
each symbolizing a different emotion. . . . 

After leaving the Museum we were guided to the Mosque of St. 
Sophia, one of the greatest church edifices and one of the greatest 
trophies that the Turks have to show for the wars with the Chris- 
tians. It is a most remarkable building, and makes an impression 
quite different from that produced by the Gothic churches on the 
continent of Europe. The latter have something somber about 
them, while the former makes a cheerful impression immediately as 
one enters. It is an immense building, and gives the most flattering 
testimony to the skill of the ancient architect. I shall not begin to 
describe this wonderful mosque, but will only say that a glimpse 
of it alone would be sufficient to attract one to Constantinople. We 
heard the same chants which sounded so pleasantly in my ears in 
the Mosque of Mohammed Ali in Cairo, and convinced me that some 
of the melodies of the Mohammedans and of the Jews have a com- 
mon origin. . . . 

Friday, June 18th, was a great day. It is always a great day in 
Constantinople, not because it is the Moslem Sabbath, but because 
it is the occasion of the Sultan's going to his mosque, which is at- 
tended by very imposing military ceremonies. We had to go to the 
American Legation, where we procured a letter granting us the 
privilege of entering a part of the Palace from which we could ob- 
serve the whole show. We came in time and had a good seat before 
an advantageously placed window. Soon after we arrived, about 
eleven o'clock, the military came marching from all directions. The 



192 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

bands of music followed one another in quick succession, and things 
looked very lively on the Palace grounds. . . . Finally the 
time for the passing of the Sultan came. Everything subsided into 
perfect stillness. Then there followed a procession of the digni- 
taries ; this embraced some of the most venerable looking men I ever 
beheld. Everything was quiet. Then came carriage after carriage 
bearing the female members of His Majesty's household. The cur- 
tains shielded the occupants from the public gaze. Finally the Sul- 
tan's carriage came. He was attended by a single adjutant. He 
is rather a fine-looking man, but looks dejected and careworn. As 
the carriage approached the mosque, the priest on the minaret per- 
formed his part. He had a fine voice and he lent additional in- 
terest to the occasion. The carriages bearing the twenty-three wives 
stopped short of the mosque. The horses were detached, and the 
ladies remained in the carriages. After the Sultan entered, there 
was some fine singing to be heard in the interior of the mosque. 
The ceremony in the mosque lasted about three-quarters of an hour. 
There was a general marching off of the military, during which the 
Sultan returned to the Palace, driving the horses himself. It was a 
magnificent affair. While we were looking at the various parades, 
coffee was served, and was very agreeable to us. . . . 

Constantinople has preserved so many of its old buildings that 
it presents a more ancient appearance than any other city we have 
seen, with the exception of Hebron. . . . We passed through 
the Jewish quarter, then through the Turkish quarter, and finally 
through the Greek quarter. I could not distinguish the Jew from 
the Turk. . . . 

Constantinople, June 21, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . It is now 11.30 A. M., and we are to be called for by 
Cook and Sons for embarkation in the Austrian Lloyd that is to 



Oriental Trip. 193 

carry us to Athens, and so I have a little time left to continue my 
story about our Constantinople experience. We had been so busy, 
and really worked so hard that rosy [the Sabbath] with its rest- 
fulness was welcomed with special delight. I went to a Sephardic 
Sckul in the evening and in the morning and, as usual, was called 
up, and had the honor of opening the Aron ha-Kodesh. This honor 
is extended in a peculiar way, which I noticed also in Naples. . . . 
First I had to draw the curtain, then I unlocked the door, and then 
withdrew a second curtain ; in closing the same order was followed, 
and finally I had to bring the key to the Oabbaij the chief official. 
The services were very decorous, but the Chazzan was not much. 
I have not heard a good Chazzan since I left home. . . . 

One immediately recognizes a Turkish house here. The windows 
are latticed so that no one can see what is inside. The Turks ap- 
parently get along well with their many wives. The Jews and 
Turks get along very well with each other. The Turk, on the other 
hand, has no- friendship for the Christian. The Turk is always pre- 
pared to protect the Jew against the Christian, and the Christian 
who injures a Jew has to answer strictly for it. . . . The Turk 
seems to be a good-natured creature, and, we are told, gives no 
offense unless provoked; every one here says that the Armenian 
massacre was brought on by the Armenians themselves. A stranger, 
however, cannot judge in these matters. . . . 

Athens, June 23, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . We received the mail sent us from Jerusalem. . . . 
We were delighted with the letters, having heard nothing from 
home for such a long time The description of the march of the 
Massachusetts Sixth was truly touching. Mamma read it to me 
and had to stop. I took up the letter, but it was too much for me 



194 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

also. Thank God that Baltimore has been given the opportunity to 
show that she recognizes her shame, in regard to the outrage perpe- 
trated upon the poor fellows of that regiment in 1861 ! 

Kome, June 28, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . Athens has a very modern appearance, and no one, 
looking at the fine, broad streets and cheerful houses would infer 
that it was an old city. What there is of Athens . . . is a 
new city. The old city has disappeared, and the ancient monuments 
and ruins are the only witnesses of the existence of the Athens of 
history. . . . 

Kome, July 1, 1898. 
My dear little Julia, 

Here we are in Eome, a great city very far off. There are many 
things to be seen here, and there are many stories told us of things 
that have happened here many hundreds and even thousands of 
years ago. We are kept busy seeing these things and hearing these 
stories from morning till night, but not so busy as not to remember 
that your [fifth] birthday is approaching. I send you my heartfelt 
congratulations across the big ocean. ... I hope that you will 
grow up to be a fine woman, whom everybody will love as I love you 
now. . . . God bless you. 

Your Grandfather. 

Florence, July 4, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . We are just now awaiting a report of the engagement at 
Santiago. The papers report that the Americans have suffered 
great losses. I hope that we shall soon hear that Santiago has been 
taken. I met a gentleman from Philadelphia at the hotel who 



Oriental Trip. 195 

looked very gloomy, but I feel very hopeful. There is no sympathy 
for us on this side of the Atlantic except in England. We talk to 
none but Englishmen and Americans about the war. . . . 

Florence, July 5, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . I do not know how to begin my story about Eome. It is 
a great city because it was such a great city, and because it has pre- 
served so many monuments which bring us face to face with the 
past. It is only in studying what the past really was that we can be- 
come reconciled with the shortcomings of the present. The motives 
that govern men may not be better now than they were in the past, 
when men delighted in the practice of what can only be termed bar- 
barism, but things have been so shaped in our civilization that the 
power of a single person or the power in the hands of a few cannot 
be so strong as to commit such wrongs and avoid responsibility. In 
other words, the world at large is not so defenceless as it was, and 
the progress of civilization seems to mean the development of 
methods and means by which every individual shall know what jus- 
tice is and how he can best secure and maintain his rights. . . . 
Progress seems slow, when we contemplate individual evils of to- 
day, yet when we look at the monuments of the past and listen to 
their testimony, we have every reason to be hopeful for the fu- 
ture. . . . 

What a monument is the Sistine Chapel to the genius of Mi- 
chelangelo ! Such frescoes ! ! I enjoyed very much the scene in 
which he consigned to Inferno a cardinal who was objectionable to 
him, with his own picture, now indistinct, grinning at him. It is 
said that the Cardinal found things too hot for him, and appealed 
to the Pope to have the fresco altered ; the Pope replied, " If Mi- 
chelangelo has put you in Purgatory, I would cheerfully release 
you; but, as you are in Hell, nan possumus!" 



196 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

From here we wended our way to the Vatican, and brought up in 
the rooms containing Raphael's great paintings. What a pity that 
his genius does not live now in some one who could exercise his 
skill on subjects that would be more suitable! One is dosed ad 
nauseam with the many holy pictures one has to look at here. Of 
course, it is well enough to say that these are great works of art, 
and one need only look at them in that light. Yes, they are great 
works of art, and they have been held up so long before the eyes of 
the flock that their effect has been incomparably greater than that of 
the staves which Jacob shaped and placed in the troughs. These 
pictures have had a more powerful influence in molding the beliefs 
of men than creeds and sermons and absolutions and what not. I 
am persuaded that their total destruction would be a blessing. I 
should not object to having them buried for a few centuries, and 
then discovered and exhibited as a relic of the art of the past, simi- 
larly to the artistic creations of the ancient Greeks. The evil, how- 
ever, will in all probability have to disappear in a slower way, and 
the world will have to wait. It is well for all the world to have pa- 
tience until the good time shall come when the truth will prevail, 
and this refined idolatry will have ceased, and religion will profess 
less and do more for the good of man. But for us, who have waited 
so long, to whom progress seems so terribly slow, whose expectations 
have been disappointed so often by misleading signs, for whom the 
greatest century in the world's history is to have so humiliating an 
ending, wird die Sache dock ein lischen langweilig. But a better 
day will come. It is certain to come. When, the Lord knows. . . . 

Venice, July 8, 1898. 
Dear Julia, 

. . . This is a great city built on the sea. The streets are 
mostly paved with water and when you want to take a long walk 
you must go in a boat. There are some little streets on land and 
many pretty old buildings. Your Grandfather. 



Oriental Trip. 197 

Cadenabbia, Lake Como, July 13, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . We also went to the great cemetery [in Milan], which 
is very fine, abounding in works of art, and possessing a crematory, 
which was explained to us in detail. It is made use of considerably, 
which means a good deal when we know that Italy is a Catholic 
country and that cremation is interdicted by the church. A curious 
fashion prevailing here is the placing of a photograph in porcelain 
of the deceased on most of the tombstones. . . . 

In Eome we also visited the Jewish catacombs. They are very 
interesting, although they have been but partially explored. It is 
remarkable that they bear either Greek or Latin inscriptions. A 
few Hebrew inscriptions have been found, but they have been re- 
moved to some museum. I think that the probable explanation is 
that they had forgotten their language, as has been the case in a 
number of persecutions, and also [that] a condition of too great 
liberty led to religious indifference, a condition which unfortunately 
prevails to an alarming extent in Italy to-day. . . . 

In the afternoon we "did" the Coliseum and the Forum. It 
was a great sight. It was no ordinary impression that we received 
in standing amid the scenes of such great historical events. The 
scene is overwhelming in its effect. How much history does it not 
remind us of ! Volumes have been written about it, volumes will 
continue to be written about it, and to the end of time the newest 
things, the newest thoughts will in some manner be brought into 
relation with the things and thoughts and life which have made 
these relics famous. . . . 

We next saw the Temple of Minerva, an ancient establishment 
where idolatry was carried on on a grand scale; it has been con- 
verted into the present St. Laurence's, where idolatry is carried on 
on a very great scale also. More frescoes, more Madonnas, more 
monuments to the dead. . . . 



198 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

Stbesa, Lake Maggioee, July 14, 1898. 
. . . Among all the artists [whose works we saw in Kome] 
Michelangelo, in my opinion, stands preeminent, and I cannot ex- 
press myself better as to the impression his works made upon me 
than by repeating what I said after seeing his many masterpieces 
and his portrait, painted by one of his greatest pupils : " He looks 
as if he had made himself." . . . 

Luceene, July 18, 1898. 
Deae Childeen, 

. . . We have seen Thorwaldsen's lion again, and sat before 
it a good long time, and it appears the greater, the longer one looks 
at it. . . . Yesterday we took the trip to the Pilatus Kulm 
and looked down upon the great mountains and the lake below. 
We saw the most various and beautiful wild flowers, the stately 
pines and cedars all the way up, and from the summit we had a 
grand view of the Alps, their peaks and crags and chasms and 
smiling valleys. . . . The mountains show their snow-caps 
proudly, as if saying, " We all belong to one great family." . . . 

When I saw the young folks with their alpenstocks yodeling as 
they ascended this great mountain afoot, I thought of the time 
that my feet tripped up joyfully in the same way, and I felt grate- 
ful for what I enjoyed thirty-seven years ago, and I feel equally 
grateful that we can enjoy together what a bounteous nature has 
so lavishly provided. I feel thankful for the vigor of my youth 
which I so love to remember, and for our advancing years, which 
others may notice, but which we feel so little. 

It is remarkable how unfriendly all Europe, with the exception 
of England, is to America. It is amusing to hear that it is not 
right for any government to interfere in the internal affairs of any 
other country. I asked one gentleman what he had to say about 
the powers sending their navies to Crete, not so very long ago. 



Oriental Trip. 199 

" That was an international question," he replied. I -wanted to 
know why we could not do a little of the international business 
ourselves. . . . 

Baden-Baden, July 28, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

Baden-Baden seems to have been chosen by nature as its holiday 
place. Such grand forests ! Such lovely mountains and hills and 
charming valleys, and smiling cottages and palatial villas. The 
Gardener has chosen to place his chef d'ceuvre here. Wherever one 
goes one hears the sweet music of some rushing brook, and wher- 
ever one stops there is a friendly inn to bid him welcome. 

. . . Our people have two congregations here, the one recog- 
nized by the government, which is reformed, and the Religions- 
gesellschaft, which is orthodox. . . . There is a good deal of 
bad feeling existing between the members of the two organizations. 
One would suppose, with the common hatred which assails them 
from without, that they would have learned by this time to become 
more peaceable among themselves. The opinion which I formed 
when I was in Germany last, that on the whole, bad as things are 
with us, they are immeasurably better than they are in Germany, 
has been strengthened. There are a few very stanch Jews in most 
places; the majority, however, are indifferent, and in great part 
anxious to divest themselves of anything that would make them 
known as Jews. Conversions to Christianity and intermarriages 
have largely increased. Anti-Semitism is much complained of. 
The German Jews have a bad time of it. When they live quietly 
they are accused of grasping all they can and keeping it ; and, when 
they " put on style " and spend their money freely, they are pointed 
out as the parasites who have appropriated the wealth of the coun- 
try. Will this ever get better, or is the German heart incapable of 
that elevation which will approve of fair play for all men ? There 
14 



200 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

is not much generosity among the Germans, anyway. They don't 
like it a bit that America has succeeded so well in its war against 
Spain. They complain that America had no right to interfere in 
the internal affairs of a neighboring country, and that America is 
rich enough and large enough and ought to be satisfied. I told 
some of them that we did not propose to learn how to be satisfied 
from Germany. . . . 

Cologne, August 2, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . The news of Bismarck's death was announced [last Sun- 
day] .... He was not a friend of our people ; the Anti-Semi- 
tism which has disgraced Germany these many years was conjured 
up by him; and therefore there will be no mourning in Israel for 
him. From the standpoint of a German ... he was certainly 
a great man. But there is a great difference in great men. What 
a contrast between him and Gladstone ! The one wanted to attain 
a great object, and it mattered little as to the choice of means to 
reach it; the other never disobeyed the dictates of his conscience in 
the work he did. . . . 

S. S. Chevalier, August 16, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . The journey took us over a beautiful part of Scotland, 
richly cultivated, and showing the golden color of the ripened wheat- 
fields to greater advantage than I had ever seen it. The very dark 
green fields which surrounded them formed frames that added much 
to the beautiful picture. . . . There are parts which are quite 
ruggedly picturesque, where the farmer does not ply his trade and 
the heather imparts a soft reddish purple to the landscape. We 
traveled with a very nice, plain Scotch lady, who was very patriotic 
and pointed out the interesting points on the way and became quite 
enthusiastic in her descriptions. . . . 



Oriental Trip. 201 

London, August 25, 1898. 
Dear Children, 

. . . On Monday we . . . rode through hitherto unex- 
plored regions [of London] on top of omnibuses. One can hardly 
tire of this in this great and highly interesting city. The city is 
much changed and the improvements are marvelous. The new- 
streets that have been opened and the many fine buildings that have 
been erected upon them have been done altogether under the direc- 
tion of the County Council. The individual has had to yield to the 
corporation, and the result has been advantageous. It looks a little 
strange to us Americans that men cannot build as they please and 
that individual liberty has had to yield somewhat to the general 
will in the construction of buildings. I find that it is just as neces- 
sary that the individual should be directed by some general authority 
in the construction of buildings as by the general law. When every 
man can have his own way, the individual becomes prominent to 
the disadvantage of the general public, and just such results ap- 
pear as are so painfully illustrated by the Stafford Hotel [in Balti- 
more] defacing a whole neighborhood and injuring the value of 
neighboring property. Here all the new streets show the effect of 
some general design ; our streets, especially in business districts, dis- 
play the ill effect of unrestricted competition in building. . . . 

This morning, ... at the invitation of Dayyan Spiers, I 
[went] to the Beth-Din. The Beth-Din- convenes every Monday 
and Thursday morning at eleven o'clock to settle difficulties between 
Jews who are willing to submit their disputes to the adjudication 
of the Jewish Law. I stayed from eleven to half -past twelve o'clock, 
and was extremely interested. The parties recognize the decisions 
as just and they have their differences settled promptly and without 
cost. ... I have a note of the cases which were brought up, 
and may refer to them when I come back. . . . The Shochetim 
[slaughterers] are also to some extent under the control of the Beth- 



202 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Din. One candidate presented his knife, which was found to be in 
good condition. He was asked to step out and the Dayyan took out 
his penknife and made a small nick, which the candidate promptly 
found when it was returned [to him] .... 



DR. AND MRS. AARON FRIEDENWALD 

iSgg 



cuAwnBaaifH hohaa .8rm anA no 



warn 




CHAPTEE X. 
Letters (1899-1901). 

In the spring of 1899, while in Germany, I received a number 
of letters, from which the following passages have been taken : 

Baltimore, May 4, 1899. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . I forgot to mention that, at the first evening meeting of 
the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty at McCoy Hall, President 
Gilman introduced me to Dr. George Adam Smith, who lectured a 
few years ago on the " Psalms " at the Hopkins, and who is the 
author of the " Historical Geography of Palestine." He talked 
with me about my trip. I sent him the Exponent with my lecture 
on the colonies, and he wrote me a letter saying how much it inter- 
ested him, which I prize very highly. . . . 

Baltimore, May 11, 1899. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . Last night mamma and I went to Ford's to see a play 
produced by a German company from New York. The piece, a 
drama, called " Das Erie/' was fine, and the acting superb. It was 
acting so close to nature that one felt that he was witnessing an 
actual event. There was only a very small Publicum present. The 
German influence has decidedly diminished in Baltimore during the 
last thirty years. There are very few left of those who were in the 
prime of life twenty or thirty years ago; those who were younger 
have become thoroughly Americanized, and . . . very few have 
immigrated since. . . . 



204 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Baltimore, May 31, 1899. 
Dear Harrt, 

The world is advancing. Bobenhausen, I learn from your letter, 
much to my surprise, is on the line of the railroad. And you have 
been in Altenbuseck ! I remember my grateful feelings towards my 
father, when I visited the old home in 1860, for not letting me be 
born and brought up as one of its citizens. . . . 

In July and August, 1900, my parents made a trip through the 
Western part of the United States. The following extracts are taken 
from letters written by my father while on this journey. 

Denver, July 13, 1900. 
Dear Children, 

Anybody who does not think this is a big country had better 
measure it. There is no wonder . . . that some men are anx- 
ious to become . . . President of so great a country, but some 
go about it in a very foolish way We brought enough dust with us 
from Chicago to be molded into a country almost as big as some 
which have a standing army. Beyond Chicago the country is flat, 
but neither stale nor unprofitable. We learned some things about 
the hardships undergone by the early settlers which are quite inter- 
esting. It seems to me that, besides other things, McKinley votes 
are growing out here. Ifs a big subject, and I have but little 
paper. . . . 

Pike's Peak, July 17, 1900. 
Here we are at the summit of Pike's Peak. We could not resist 
the temptation. Except for being a little light-headed, we are well 
and enjoy this grand prospect. Such scenes as we have passed are 
indescribable. " O Lord, how manifold are thy works ! In wisdom 
hast thou made them all." We thank Him for permitting us to be- 
hold this great sight. 



Letters (1899-1901). 205 

Colorado Springs, July 17, 1900. 
Dear Children, 

-. . . We arrived at Colorado Springs at 11.55 this morning. 
The man who was to take us and our baggage to the hotel, learning 
that we wanted to take the train for Pike's Peak at 1.30 P. M., 
proposed to take us to Manitou and through the Garden of the 
Gods and leave us at the station in time for Pike's Peak. We 
let him . . . send our baggage to the hotel aud jumped into 
his carriage, and off we were. Such a drive ! It was magnificent. 
The town of Manitou is a garden spot, the houses apparently 
hanging on the side of the mountains and receiving the full benefit 
of the mountain streams in a beautiful water course that rushes 
over many rocks and sings a continuous sweet song. But . . . 
the Garden of the Gods! What a grand surprise! ISTo plants 
that wither, no flowers that fade, no trees that are uprooted by the 
storms, as many of the latter as we have seen hereabouts, but a 
grand park of stone, planted, as it were, to commemorate the 
glory of its great Artificer ! Here you see what at a little distance 
looks like a Gothic cathedral, statues of all sorts of beings, here a 
porcupine, there an ant-eater, further on many, many mushrooms 
that do not grow in a night and wither in a day, and, to vary the 
picture, many vases with . . . flowers and shrubbery of stone 
overhanging their sides. Not even the great gate at the entrance 
has been forgotten. No such scene, probably, is to be found any- 
where else in the world. . . . 

We got to the station in time for the Pike's Peak train, and up 
and up we went. And what a panorama passed before us on our 
journey ! Such rocks, with such forms ! . . . Masonry that is 
sublime and gigantic, and next to which the grand buildings of our 
great cities are but pygmies ! Towers, citadels, fortresses, palaces, 
all greeted us in turn as up we went, and such beautiful wild-flowers 
and so many waterfalls and streams that bounded from rock to 



206 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

rock, made up of many uniting and then parting again and slipping 
away in all directions between the rocks, apparently lost to each 
other, and again leaping over each other, like one grand game of 
hide and seek ! And then the beautiful pines that grew luxuriantly 
under the protection of the mountain slopes ! . . . Where this 
shelter was wanting, those that were stripped of foliage and limbs, 
and only showed short remains of what had been prolific boughs, 
looking like the great spinal column of some . . . huge being, 
with the remnant of its ribs ! And, as we neared the summit more 
and more, we had below us all the other mountains, . . . bow- 
ing in submission ... to the highest of all. We spent forty- 
five minutes on the summit, where the government has its signal 
station. Well, I suppose you think we were very light-headed to 
undertake such a venture. We felt a little light-headed when we 
were up there. Everybody has a little of this sensation. It has a 
very peculiar, stuffy effect upon the hearing, . . . but we were 
all right as soon as the train began its descent. . . . 

Salt Lake City, July 27, 1900. 
Dear Harry, 

Here we are in the " New Zion," with Tabernacle and Temple, the 
Dead Sea not far off, and prophets too. I shall have much to write 
later on. . . . 

Grayling Inn, 
South Fork of Madison Kiver, Mont. 

July 25, 1900. 
Dear Children, 

. . . I must say a word about Salt Lake City. It is a reve- 
lation. On approaching the Mormon settlement we had an illustra- 
tion of what was called a wilderness before they came. They have 
accomplished wonders. Through thrift and especially through a 



Letters (1899-1901). 207 

wise system of irrigation they have established forests of poplars 
and other trees and made a most charming place of it. Salt Lake 
City is really beautiful, and the great Temple, Tabernacle, Assem- 
bly Hall, and Tithing Court gives it a characteristic interest. The 
streets are all one hundred and fifty feet wide, and trees are every- 
where, shading the sidewalks. There are many things to be said 
about Salt Lake City and the Mormons; I shall only say this: in 
talking with a number of influential Gentiles I find that it is the 
general opinion of that class that the development of the state and 
of the city would have been much greater had the Mormons never 
settled there. The management of the city has for a number of years 
been under the control of the Gentiles, and much of its recent pro- 
gress is attributed thereto. The Mormons are not progressive. The 
Gentiles have been attracted by the mining interests, which are very 
great, and if the Mormons had not been here there would have been 
a still greater settlement. It is a remarkable coincidence that both 
in South Africa and in Utah it was the discovery of the mines that 
brought to these countries the people who stayed the hands of those 
who wanted to make a country for themselves, no matter how much 
it would stand in the way of progress. . . . 

Yellowstone National Park, July 26, 1900. 
Dear Children, 

It is now 7.30 P. M.; we have finished our supper, and I have 
been sitting a little while before the big fire in the lobby of the hotel. 
When I looked into the fire, I thought of Ik Marvel's " Keveries of 
a Bachelor," and all sorts of fancies rose before me. I forgot the 
dust and the stinging of the sun in the afternoon, but I could still 
hear the gurgling of the hundred cooking-pots below ground; the 
beautiful, dazzling colors of the pools are still delighting my eyes, 
and I see the steam rising here and there in tall columns as a sign 
of what is going on below, and then the eruptions of the geysers dis- 



208 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

tract my attention from all other things, and I realize that we are 
where nature is exhibiting her greatest wonders. How can I give 
an account of all this? 

This morning, at about 8.30 o'clock, we started for the Midway 
and the Upper Basin. What we had hitherto seen was in the Lower 
Basin. The weather was fine and cool, ... a good rain set- 
tled the road for us, and we cheerfully began our ride. In the Mid- 
way there are a number of geysers which become active at irregular 
intervals; and, although we saw none in eruption here, we had a 
good opportunity to inspect the formation that characterized them. 
The pools, the " Emerald," " Prismatic," and " Turquoise," are 
such gems that the jeweler is put to shame. Here he could get in- 
spiration for colors and forms, but he could never reproduce them. 
Such spectra, rich and sparkling, can certainly be seen nowhere else. 
The " Emerald " Pool, for instance, has a central pool on the sur- 
face of which all colors are seen, green in the center, surrounded 
by a band of yellow, trimmed with a broad border of Pompeian red 
with an edging of delicate grayish-white. The " Prismatic " pool 
has the most dazzling spectra; the water is clear and one sees deep 
into the cauldron, and from the sides of the walls beautiful colors 
are reflected. From all the pools there run in all directions little 
streams that have a bed of red always trimmed with a lighter, 
fringe-like border. But here I shall stop trying to do what cannot 
be done. . . . 

There are two sorts of geysers ; those that rise from the center of 
a pool and throw up hot water in great bulk but to no great height, 
and those that issue through a peculiar formation which does not 
allow such broad columns of fluid to escape, but the . . . jet 
is very high, rising from one hundred and fifty to two hundred feet. 
One of these, the " Bee-hive," is situated on an eminence, a white, 
hard, marble-like mass, on which there is something very much like 
a bee-hive. In this there is a smooth, cylindrical opening. We saw 



Letters (1899-1901). 209 

a number of these of various forms, and then reached a lunching 
station of rather rustic, but very attractive character. We had some 
time before lunch and we strolled over to " Old Faithful," a geyser 
which has an eruption regularly about every hour. During the time 
we spent in coming and going we saw three eruptions. It was a 
grand spectacle. Hundreds of kodaks are turned on it every day. 
There are many pictures to be purchased, but the kodakist wants 
to take his own, and always hopes to have a better one than anybody 
else. We saw a number of other eruptions. I have read many elabo- 
rate descriptions of all these scenes, but they all fall so much short 
of the truth that I hesitate to give my own impression. Certain it 
is that this trip has been a wonderful experience, and enjoyment is 
not the word that can express what we have felt. One day . . . 
in the park is far more than an equivalent for the great journey, its 
hardship, and the pecuniary outlay. Here nature seems to revel in 
one great kaleidoscope. . . . 

Yellowstone National Park, July 28, 1900. 
Dear Children, 

Here we are at ... at Yellowstone Lake, having arrived at 
6.15 P. M. yesterday. . . . We moved about very little, for at 
an altitude of over seven thousand feet very few can undertake 
physical exercise without its causing shortness of breath. . . . 
What a wonderful place this park is ! It is a great cabinet in which 
nature exhibits her most precious gems : mountains and rivers ; lakes 
and gushing streams; geysers showing the remarkable formations 
through which they pour out columns of boiling water; . . . 
the basins with their openings, from which issue significant sub- 
terranean murmurs ; endless forests, with their ancient trees reach- 
ing straight up one hundred, one hundred and fifty, and even two 
hundred feet; pools with grotesque shapes and glittering, . . . 
ever-changing colors which make one fancy that all the rainbows 



210 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

of past times have been dissolved in them ; little rivulets that have 
painted the tracts over which they course in effects that would serve 
as fine models for wall decorations ; and such flowers, such beautiful 
wild-flowers in profusion, in the shade, in the brightest sunlight, in 
the woods, fringing the roads and streams, here, there, and every- 
where! . . . 

Yesterday morning ... we passed through part of the Up- 
per Basin, . . . and " Old Faithful " gave us one of its most 
beautiful performances. It had been perfectly at rest before we 

arrived, but it was expected soon to go to work. Mr. T and 

I walked right up to it and looked down its throat, when we heard a 
gurgling sound. We withdrew our heads quite promptly, and up 
came a puff and off we ran, for a jet of boiling water one hundred 
and fifty feet high was sent forth. It was a glorious sight, and our 
company enjoyed both the eruption and our run. . . . 

Yellowstone National Pare, 
Grand Canton Hotel, July 29, 1900. 
Dear Children, 

. . . Well, I must give in. I contended that nothing could 
surpass what we had already seen, but . . . this is the grandest 
of all. The Grand Canyon is the grandest of all nature's pictures. 
It runs fully two and a half miles. Its walls incline upward and 
outward for fifteen hundred feet and more, at an angle of about 
sixty degrees, and in its apparently narrow bed the Yellowstone 
River flows. I say apparently . . . narrow, for, judging from 
the infinitesimal appearance of two men half-way down, a very big 
river would have plenty of elbow-room in it. The colors reflected 
from these walls are marvelous both in their individual tints and 
in their Mendings, yellow, red, brown, green, delicate pale blue, and 
shades that I cannot enumerate. But more than this, what grand 
carvings these great walls present ! The " Castle Ruins," for ex- 



Letters (1899-1901). 211 

ample, are like an enormous castle partly defaced by time. From 
" Inspiration Point " we got a good look at this great exhibition of 
coloring and of rocks decorated by that great Hand whose work is 
inimitable. We stood awestruck. . . . And here and there 
stood separate pillar-shaped rocks of grotesque form, upon which 
eagles had made their nests, and upon which one proud possessor 
had already alighted. It seemed that here was the . . . throne 
of the great American eagle. . . . 

In 1901 my parents visited the Pan-American Exposition in Buf- 
falo, which my father regarded as " a great success. The architec- 
tural effect," he wrote, " is grand, and the electrical illumination is 
wonderful." From the exposition the journey extended to Toronto, 
Quebec, and Montreal, and thence by way of Lake Champlain and 
Lake George to Tannersville, in the Catskills, at which a short stay 
was made. The following letter was written to his granddaughter, 
who was then in Europe. 

Montreal, August 10, 1901. 
Dear Julia, 

I wonder where you are and what you are doing. If there were 
a telephone between you and me, I would ring you up, and I wonder 
how you would say " Hello !" in German. I suppose you have seen 
wonderful things, seen many kinds of people, and made some nice 
little German girl friends. Do they have the same games that little 
girls have here ? Do you or they study more for school ? Have they 
all grandfathers that love them as much as I do you ? If you answer 
all these questions fully, you will have quite a letter to write to me. 
Good-bye. God bless you. Affectionately, 

Grandpa. 



CHAPTEE XI. 
Last Days (1902). 

My father generally enjoyed fairly good health, although he suf- 
fered at intervals, from the days of his early manhood, in spite of 
the greatest moderation in eating and drinking, from gastrointesti- 
nal disturbances. In 1880 he had an attack so severe that he was 
confined to his bed for nearly two months. At one time during this 
illness his life was almost despaired of. In 1901 certain symptoms, 
at first very slight, made their appearance, indicating functional 
gastro-intestinal disturbances. These symptoms became annoying, 
and in the spring of 1902 he was persuaded to go to Europe in the 
hope of recovering his health. Although he suffered considerably 
before his departure, his illness did not interfere in any way with 
the varied activities in which he was engaged. He continued to see 
his patients till the day he left Baltimore. He finished his course of 
lectures at the college. On May 18, 1902, he took part in the exer- 
cises at the annual examination of the children of the Hebrew 
Orphan Asylum. The next day, May 19, he left Baltimore, accom- 
panied by my mother, and on May 20 they sailed from New York 
on the Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse. At the advice of a medical 
friend he went to Herrenalb in the Black Forest, remaining there 
until July 2. While at Herrenalb he felt decidedly better at inter- 
vals, and at Kissingen, which was his next stopping-place, his 
health seemed markedly to improve. The following letters are 
taken from his correspondence while oin this trip. 

Frankfort, June 3, 1902. 
Dear Children, 

. . . Frankfort is a most charming city, and the Frankfurter 
Eof has made us feel very much at home. I like almost every- 



AARON FRIEDENWALD 

1902 



CHAP; 









id from 

■ 

cuAwnaaaifn hohaa 

Fra 
r Childi. 

Fraakfn 



Last Days 213 

thing here except the way they speak German. In pronouncing 
their words they are very economical with their consonants, leaving 
them out of the question as much as possible as, for example, " Ich 
wed's iesorje'" and then they squeeze their vowels so that all the 
juice runs out. The women, as a rule, walk as gracefully as they 
talk, and nevertheless they have a sort of self-satisfied assurance 
that is enviable. 

Herrenalb, June 9, 1902. 
Dear Children, 

. . . Well, the Boer War is over. I am sorry for the loss and 
suffering of these brave fellows. I am glad, however, that the war 
is over, and that England will continue in power in South Africa, 
and that the whole territory between Egypt and Cape Colony will 
form a domain over which the English flag will prevail. I feel sure 
that this will redound to the advantage of civilization and will ul- 
timately make Africa a country where many thousands of Euro- 
peans will establish themselves. 

Herrenalb, June 17, 1902. 
Dear Julia, 

I was very much pleased with the beautiful letter you wrote us. 
Grandma and I have just returned from a long walk and brought 
home with us a fine bouquet of wild flowers, which we collected in 
going along the road. The fields all around form a magnificent car- 
pet of wild flowers of all colors. Daisies, large and small, butter- 
cups, bluebells, forget-me-nots, and many other flowers, whose 
names we have not yet learned, abound everywhere. I was never 
in a place where there were so many charming brooks, whose rush- 
ing, soothing voices never cease, and which plunge down the rocks 
and splash into the air, as if they always had a holiday. 

Oh, how sleepy you would be later in the day, if you had to go 



214 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

to school as early as the children here are compelled to do ! But 
they are happy, and go along in long rows with knapsacks on their 
backs, both girls and boys, and seem proud of them. They greet 
everyone as they pass along in the most friendly manner. Neither 
the boys nor the girls wear hats, and therefore the wind can play 
them no tricks by trying to blow them off. The millinery stores 
here do not complain of this, for, so far as I know, there are none 
here. . . . 

Herrenalb, June 18, 1902. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . To-day it has been raining all day long, and it is cold 
at the same time, so that we have passed our time pleasantly in a 
warmed room. Guests are now arriving, and things are beginning 
to look more lively. . . . 

Mamma was just reading something in the Badische Presse, 
dated the nineteenth, a day ahead. I suppose they think their news 
is new enough for to-morrow. A funny country this, in some 
ways! . . . 

Wildbad, June 22, 1902. 
Dear Julia and Jonas, 

We are here after a delightful drive through the Black Forest. 

There is nothing wild here but the beasts in the menagerie, and 
so far as the Bad is concerned, we haven't discovered it. . . . 

Kjssingen, July 20, 1902. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . One has very little time here, except for doing nothing. 
We get up at six, and it is generally seven before our day's duty be- 
gins. We go to the Brunnen, get the water, warm it, drink it 
slowly, and then go to the doctor. Then we return to the Brunnm, 




MRS. AARON FRIEDENWALD 
1903 



Aat> 

here ar 
they are happy, and go along in long 
bad: 

one as they pass aloi 






. 
There is nothing wild here but the beasts in tl 
so far as the Bo 

CIJAW'H3C]3IFn HOflAA .3HM 

Dear Harry, l ° Q1 

. . One lias vi 
We get up at six, and it is gen< 
gins. We go to the Bn. 
nd then go to tht 



Last Days 215 

drink some more water, take a little more time to do it, walk a little 
while doing it, listen to the music, and watch the passing throng 
of yonng and old, well-dressed, ill-dressed, shapely, grotesque, 
comely, and uncombed individuals, doing pretty much the same 
thing. We hear nearly all languages . . . and see a very in- 
teresting kaleidoscopic picture. . . . 

Bad Kissingen, July 22, 1902. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . One cannot fail to notice the difference between the 
manners . . . here and what we are used to at home. The 
bowing and doffing of hats is promptly and conscientiously carried 
out in a sort of conventional spirit. Everything in the way of po- 
liteness is too much stereotyped. . . . Courtesies which flow 
from consideration for the comfort of others are not so spontaneous 
as they are at home. The difference seems to me to be this. Here 
people have but limited personal rights, or they suppose so, so that 
what they consider a right they hold on to with a grasp of grim 
death. A gathering on a pavement, instead of giving way, will 
make other persons go all the way around them to pass by. On the 
benches they claim all the room they possibly can, and look surly 
at those who try to find a place for themselves also. When they 
want to get through a crowd they simply push each other aside 
without a word of apology, and many other things of this sort may 
be seen. In America everybody feels that he has all the rights he 
needs, and this feeling makes him liberal, as he has sufficient and to 
spare, so that he delights in bestowing some upon others. I think 
this is the characteristic difference between German and American 
politeness. Politeness in the one case is in accordance with fixed 
rules ; in the other it is governed by the spontaneous promptings of 
the occasion. Again, politeness here is measured out in greater or 
smaller quantities according to gradations in society, while with 
15 



216 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

us a gentleman is never apprehensive lest he be too polite to one 
who might be considered as occupying a lower station in life. 

Kissinger July 27, 1902. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . Last Friday I went to synagogue where, as usual, I 
found a large attendance. Professor Jules Oppert, of the Institute 
of France, was pointed out to me, and I had a little talk with him. 
He is a very old gentleman, apparently very nervous, and seems very 
devout while at service. . . . 

Kissingen, July 30, 1902. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . It will please you to have me tell you that I am doing 
very well. 

This morning we saw some friends from Frankfort off. . . . 
We became much attached to them. We seem to be fortunate in 
meeting people wherever we stop, to whom we become attached, and 
this is a great pleasure to us indeed. We are to go to Badenweiller 
when I am to get more "well." We shall stop at Wurzburg and 
Heidelberg. 

Heidelberg, August 2, 1902. 
Dear Harry, 

. . . Prof. F. examined me very carefully and after he got 
through told me that I had a tumor of the pylorus and that he 
would recommend an operation. ... I told him that I preferred 
to have it done at home. . . . We shall leave Hamburg on the 
Furst Bismarck on Aug. 7. We have to face the matter and put 
our trust in God. . . . 

I regret to have to make so serious a communication, but we must 
all bear up bravely. 



Last Days 217 

The manner in which he received the announcement that he was 
suffering from a malignant disease (cancer of the stomach), after 
he had been led to believe that his complete recovery was a matter 
of a short time, was characterized by coolness and courage. A 
friend wrote " Bewundernswerth is der Mut dieses Marines, der der 
Gefahr ruhig entgegensieht, alles uberlegt, und seinen Frieden rait 
der Erde macht." 

He had a " most pleasant voyage," during which he felt " remark- 
ably well." At the " captain's dinner," on the evening before the 
vessel landed, he was called upon to make a speech. This speech, 
I was afterwards told, was very bright and enjoyable. 

He returned to Baltimore on Sunday, August 17, 1902, and on 
being informed of the recent death of his friend, the Eeverend Dr. 
Benjamin Szold, wrote the following, his last important letter. 

Baltimore, August 17, 1902. 
Mrs. S. Szold and Family, 

Dear Friends. — I have just returned home. I was greatly shocked 
to learn that my good old friend, Kev. Dr. B. Szold, had passed 
away. I crave the privilege of mingling my grief and tears with 
yours. I revered him as the scholar and teacher in Israel; I thor- 
oughly appreciated the influence of his kind, genial, generous na- 
ture; I loved him because I felt that my heart was bound to his. 
Accept my heartfelt condolence. May the example which he has 
been to us all be your consolation and strengthen you to bear your 
grief. Mrs. Friedenwald desires to join me in these sentiments. 
Sincerely yours, A. Friedenwald. 

Preparations for an operation were made. At this time my 
father, although he saw only his near relatives and went out only 
for a few short walks, was always in good spirits, and never showed 
the slightest depression. He set all his worldly affairs in order, and 



218 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

on Wednesday, August 20, he underwent the operation. The diag- 
nosis that had been made was confirmed, but it was found that the 
disease had made much greater progress than had been anticipated, 
so that the removal of the growth was impossible. The operation 
was followed by intense suffering. My father bore it all uncom- 
plainingly, appreciative of every attention on the part of his 
nurses, and bravely fighting the battle for life. "You know how 
cowardly most of us physicians are when we face the great crisis," 
I wrote shortly afterwards to a brother medical man. " He knew 
the nature of his disease but too well, but he did not murmur, he 
was cheerful to the last, and with profound faith in the great 
jorni jdnj Kan, the ' faithful and merciful Healer,' he left his case 
in His hands, ready and willing to abide by His decision." The end 
came on August 26, 1902 (Ab 23, 5662) at 1.35 A. M. His mind 
was perfectly clear until the last; he called for certain remedies 
only a few minutes before he died. His wife and all of his children 
were at his bedside at the end. 

In accordance with my father's wishes, the services at his funeral 
were those of the simple Jewish ritual, no sermon or address being 
delivered. He was buried on Wednesday, August 27, in the ceme- 
tery of the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation, in which his grand- 
father, his parents, and many of his relatives lie interred. Memorial 
services were held at the synagogue of the Chizuk Emoonah Con- 
gregation, of which he was president, on Sunday, November 9, 1902. 
Addresses were delivered by Eeverend Dr. H. P. Mendes, Eabbi of 
the Shearith Israel Congregation, of New York, Eeverend Dr. H. 
W. Schneeberger, Eabbi of the Chizuk Emoonah Congregation, Dr. 
Cyrus Adler, president of the Jewish Theological Seminary, of New 
York, and Professor Solomon da Silva Solis Cohen, of Jefferson 
Medical College, Philadelphia. At a memorial meeting of the fac- 
ulty, alumni, and students of the College of Physicians and Sur- 
geons, held on December 2, 1902, addresses were delivered by Dr. 



AARON FRIEDENWALD 

190! 



on V 

i 
■ 



were he! 

chhewa 

Adf' rend Dr. H. 

: 

aJAWH3Q3lflT HOHAA 

Medical College. 

mni, and students of th 



Last Days 319 

William Simon, Professor of Chemistry, and Dr. John Kuhrah, 
Clinical Professor of Pediatrics. At the twenty-ninth annual re- 
union of the Liberal Club, December 31, 1902, a commemorative 
address was delivered by Mr. Louis Edward Levy, of Philadelphia. 
The addresses delivered on these several occasions I collected and 
had printed privately in the year 1903. 

My father's grave is marked by a simple stone, on which is en- 
graved the following inscription: 



Witta ins v&i mjh!> pton Ksnn 
rAsw mv wtorft a*jia -in' 1 ? it^»i 

pS 2 ? ispr wu>3 nau y iw ihii 
•pijh b&fo atf oni» » a or ipso 

DR. AARON FRIEDENWALD 

Born December SO, 1836 

Died August 26, 1902 






ADDRESSES 



INTEODUCTOEY ADDEESS DELIVEKED BEFOEE THE 
CLASS OP THE COLLEGE OE PHYSICIANS AND SUE- 
GEONS OF BALTIMOEE CITY, SEPTEMBEE 14, 1881. 

Gentlemen : 

You are confronted by a long course of medical lectures, which, 
will exact of you the most earnest attention and long-continued 
labor. With all the enthusiasm, so characteristic of youth, which 
has accompanied you thus far, and which it is to be hoped will 
cheer you on to the full attainment of your object, you will prob- 
ably experience some solicitude in taking a survey of the field of 
labor over which you will have to pass. In mustering your strength 
to see whether it is adequate for the task before you, you may 
be filled with misgivings; in testing once more the motives which 
have impelled you to a work which will impose from the start the 
most earnest labor and entail in the future the gravest responsi- 
bilities you will perhaps be subjected to anxious emotions. Many 
among you are here for the first time, and you stand upon strange 
ground. 

We meet you at the threshold of the new sphere in which you 
are to move, and it is my pleasant privilege to extend to you, on 
the part of the Faculty, a most cordial welcome, and to assure you 
of the kind sympathy and warm encouragement of those who will 
be your guides. 

If you have fortified yourselves with earnestness of purpose, the 
difficulties which you will encounter, and which at first may assume 
threatening forms, will all be successfully overcome. The progress 
which the proper diligence and application will soon enable you 
to make will render your further labor less and less irksome. It 



222 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

will teach you to appreciate the relations which the different de- 
partments of the science into which you will be introduced bear 
to each other; and instead of regarding them as quite separate 
studies from which you will have to apprehend cumulative 
difficulties, as it may appear to you at the outset, you will soon dis- 
cover that an acquaintance with one will greatly facilitate the com- 
prehension of the others. Do not be discouraged if you do not 
advance at the beginning of your work as rapidly as you would 
wish. Your earlier obstacles surmounted, those that will follow 
will not be so formidable. 

Your studies will embrace the laws of life, with its endless revela- 
tions. From the beginning of man's existence, through his devel- 
opment and growth to his senility and decay, his physical nature 
will be opened to your investigation. The wonderful parts of 
which he is composed will be made to tell their interesting stories 
of duties thoroughly fulfilled. They will show you how, though 
providing well for themselves, they are always mindful of the 
welfare of others: at one time listening for anxious messages from 
afar and promptly sending relief and sustenance ; at another, watch- 
ful of approaching danger and sending forth the thrill of warning; 
here receiving requisitions from distant laboratories for fresh 
material; and there hurrying currents loaded with effete and 
noxious matter to willing colaborers that eject it from the system, 
so that the purity of the organism be not defiled; here revivifying 
the vital fluid after its return from its voyage through the entire 
body and receiving its account of waste provided for, of warmth 
imparted, of wonderful products elaborated, and wafting away 
in one breath, far into space, the debris of destruction which it has 
brought back in testimony of its useful pilgrimage; there becoming 
the receptacle of the purified stream, propelling it through its 
countless tributaries, and throbbing anxiously that all parts, near 
and far, large and infinitesimal, may receive their due share of 



Addresses. 223 

new life. Part after part will be made to reveal its interesting 
history of useful work performed; and, while all will modestly 
acknowledge their dependence upon others, there will be none so 
modest but that it will claim to have accomplished something that 
could have been accomplished only by itself. And as you will 
learn more and more of the individual character of each part, mar- 
velling at the regularity and precision with which the more im- 
portant ones perform their life-sustaining functions, and gleaning 
what you can from the more subordinate ones which seem more 
anxious to preserve their secrets, but which will furnish unmis- 
takable evidence that they too cannot be spared, you will be forced 
to realize that, great as they are, wonderful as they are, they are 
but parts of one grand, harmonious whole. 

But you will not be permitted to stop here. Having progressed 
thus far, you will be taught that your eyes can be aided to see what 
otherwise would remain among the unseen, and the existence of 
which could hardly be suspected. Countless small bodies will reveal 
their presence to you in every spot, claiming to be the integral 
elements of every part that they inhabit; and simple as they are, 
and minute as they are, they present such strong individual features 
that wherever found their nativity cannot be mistaken. They form 
pavements of the most curious and highly ornamental designs, they 
constitute the channels in their innumerable ramifications, and 
they build up the solid walls. They are the springs which unite 
their energy to form the motive power; they are the skilful work- 
men in the laboratories from which issue such inimitable products ; 
and they are the vessels sailing along the streams, safely carrying 
their treasures to distant harbors. They form the intricate web 
which binds the parts together in their entirety and in their ele- 
mentary structure. They weave those strong bands upon which 
the mighty levers expend their strength. They constitute the essen- 
tial elements in those silvery cords which emanate from the great 



224 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

central depot of intelligence, spreading their threads in all direc- 
tions, stopping at many way-stations, proceeding on their journey 
to remote regions where their traces are lost, carrying to and fro 
with inconceivable rapidity the messages of life. 

In studying these enchanting phenomena in their endless varia- 
tions, pausing at times wonder-stricken at the revelations that you 
encounter, marvelling at the simple methods by which Nature 
accomplishes her great ends, you will become possessed with an 
irresistible desire to continue your explorations farther and farther, 
until you reach those, regions that have not yet been thoroughly ex- 
plored. And when you have learned that Nature does not impart 
all her secrets gratuitously, you will be imbued with a noble aspir- 
ation to become one of the favored class whose rare merits have 
entitled them to the honor of having contributed something new 
to science. 

But, gentlemen, you will not be permitted to look only upon the 
bright side of the picture. From your studies of the human organ- 
ism as it presents itself in health, you will pass to those investiga- 
tions which are to make you familiar with the changes wrought 
by that fell spirit, disease. How changed the picture ! How varied 
the scenes! Everywhere the enemy lurks; assuming a thousand 
different shapes, making its invasions by every avenue, penetrating 
every recess of the human organism; seizing the infant violently at 
its very entrance into the world, and throttling it in its first gasp for 
life; planting its seed often into the new being long before its 
birth, causing it to germinate there, and to develop into those 
moral, mental, and physical infirmities which are to be recognized 
as the lasting inheritance bequeathed by a previous victim. How 
cruel the monster, besieging infancj^, crushing vigorous manhood, 
and inexorable to old age ! How varied its warfare ! How numer- 
ous its weapons ! Sometimes it entails the most serious con- 
sequences by the slightest violence; and again it is driven to deal 



Addresses. 225 

its heaviest blows before the victim succumbs. Here, by just tap- 
ping a little stream, a slight inundation follows, and at once the 
features become distorted, language is rendered unintelligible, and 
the limbs dangle helpless on the trunk. How the suffering parts 
yearn to tell each other of their sorrow ! but the line of communi- 
cation is cut off, and there are no messages sent, none received. 
There it just touches a little valve bathed in the vital fluid, and the 
whole tide is changed. The motive power increases its energy, and 
there is the most anxious throbbing that no catastrophe should 
happen. But still the streams flow sluggishly, the parts fail to 
receive their adequate supply of nourishment, and the whole organ- 
ism suffers. 

We will look upon another scene. The demon blows a pestilential 
breath, and see, the body quivers and shrinks as if touched by an 
Arctic's chilling blast. Look at the ashy pallor. " Is it not the 
look of death ? " you ask. No, it is but the wind that fans the fire. 
See, warmth returns, and all is soon aglow. The furnaces are 
forced to intensify their heat, and a general conflagration threatens 
to consume the body. How turbulent the streams become ! With 
what velocity the currents run their course ! The tumult and the 
whirl confuse the thoughts, and the mind wanders. The parts 
still send their signals, but they are no longer understood. One 
misleads the other, and many mishaps occur. The compact is 
broken, for each works for itself alone, or not at all ; and anarchy 
reigns supreme. . . . The panorama moves on. Behold the next 
victim ! There he lies, helpless and so changed as to be rendered 
an object of disgust. He has been tossed upon many a rough sea, 
and at last is shipwrecked, and deserted by all his friends, save 
one, his physician. How came he to his grief? It is a sad story, 
and painful to relate. The enemy crept upon him stealthily, in 
the full enjoyment of life. No fierce onslaught was made. The 
victim continued his revels, for he knew not that he had been in- 



226 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

jured. No ! I will not recount all the sorrows through which he 
passed. Behold him, and enough will strike your eye to enlist 
your warmest sympathy. His flesh has melted into large sores, 
as if touched by the red-hot iron. Through his face the ghastly 
bones protrude, his vision is lost, and there is just enough reason 
left for him to know his woe. We'll let the curtain fall. 

Painful as the contemplation of disease may be to you, it is not 
without its compensating features. You will delight to learn that 
the vital forces do not surrender themselves without making a 
brave resistance. They enter upon the most desperate struggles to 
drive out the invader. They bear long sieges well, and though 
near exhaustion, having drawn their last rations, they often succeed 
in triumphing over the enemy. It is not an uncommon experience 
that desperate diseases which place the patient in the greatest pos- 
sible jeopardy are cured by nature's efforts alone. This is a great 
blessing, for which doctors should be extremely grateful, because it 
is to this that they owe much of their reputation. Indeed, it may 
not only be said that very sick patients get well without remedies, 
but also that they get well in spite of them. It is a fortunate 
circumstance that the doctor can submit his prescriptions to so 
reliable a proof-reader, who inserts what he finds wanting, and 
renders innocuous what should not have been added. 

In humbly acknowledging how much the cure of disease is due 
to nature's efforts, the doctor does himself no discredit; for, if he 
assumes the proper position, he claims only to lend a helping hand, 
and he feels himself sufficiently justified in the willingness with 
which the extended hand is grasped. 

But it is not only in saving life that nature's efforts play so 
notable a part, but also in repairing damages done to organs, and 
compensating for those damages that cannot be fully repaired. In 
regard to the former, it may be said that it is the only patchwork 
which is as good as new; and the latter is full of suggestions from 



Addresses. 227 

which every civil engineer may draw useful lessons. In many cases 
of disease, this power of self-defence can be largely relied upon to 
bring the case to a favorable termination, and the physician has 
little else to do than to guard the patient against accidents and 
complications, and to combat them when they do occur; in other 
words, to see that nature's efforts have fair play in the combat with 
what is essentially the disease. 

While it is well fully to value the valor and prowess of the vital 
forces in coping unaided with certain diseases, it would be an 
unfortunate policy for the profession to pursue, should we remain 
an army of observation in regard to others to which they offer but 
very little opposition, but which have a decided respect for certain 
ammunition at our command. 

Diseases make themselves known to us in a language which we 
call symptoms. Every disease has a language of its own ; but while 
some differ very much, there are others that are exceedingly similar. 
But this is not the only difficulty which confronts us in interpreting 
the languages of disease correctly. I have already hinted at com- 
plications; these too have their languages, so that we are often 
placed in the predicament of listening to two different languages 
spoken at the same time. You have no doubt experienced how 
difficult it is to give the proper attention to two or more persons 
speaking simultaneously, and you have no doubt discovered also 
that it is not always the one speaking the loudest who is entitled 
to the privilege of being heard exclusively. Sometimes a symptom 
will apparently present such urgency as entirely to conceal others 
that are of a much more important character. This may be a 
source of very serious mistakes. . . . 

But there are still more difficulties of this nature to be con- 
sidered. Languages are spoken in many dialects. It is so with 
the language of disease. A symptom of the same disease is often 
quite differently pronounced in different cases, a circumstance which 



228 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

leads not seldom to serious disagreements in the consultation-room. 
It is probably to a great extent owing to this that the public has 
discovered that doctors differ. 

Allow me to mention one more peculiarity in this regard. The 
voice of every individual has in it something that is characteristic. 
We often succeed in recognizing a person solely by the voice, when 
in other respects he has changed so much that he might pass for 
somebody else. Now, in the language of disease this peculiarity of 
voice will also be noticed, and it is owing to this that there are 
no two cases of the same disease exactly alike. This illustrates how 
important it will be for you to cultivate well your powers of 
observation. 

After becoming acquainted with the human organism in its nor- 
mal condition, and witnessing the changes which it undergoes dur- 
ing disease, and learning to discriminate accurately between the evi- 
dences of diseases, you will desire to know all about the means by 
which they can be controlled. 

"When you cast your eyes over the long list of remedies which are 
employed in the treatment of diseases, and read, in the descriptions 
of their curative properties, of all the good that can be accomplished 
by them, you will wonder how it is that there is still so much 
sickness uncontrolled, and that there are so many cases of premature 
death to be deplored. 

The remedies to which you will be introduced will be highly 
recommended for one purpose or another, and sometimes for a 
number of purposes; and, while you will witness their good effects 
with great delight, in many, many cases you will be disappointed 
to find that they will not be responded to so promptly, or so com- 
pletely, or what is worse, that they will be followed by conditions 
quite contrary to those desired. To expect a remedy to act inva- 
variably in the same way would be quite unreasonable. It would 
be extremely ungrateful to quarrel with an old friend who has 



Addresses. 229 

assisted us materially hundreds of times, simply because his last 
efforts were not attended by the same degree of success. Avoid the 
counsel, therefore, of those who try to bring discredit upon the 
materia medico, by simply referring to what is left undone, ignoring 
the great blessings they bestow upon millions of suffering mankind. 
Do not become ungrateful to your old friend; and when he asks 
you for a letter of recommendation to others, be not afraid of 
saying too much in his favor; for, if he serve others as well as he 
has served you, not a word will be erased, and he will be sent 
further on his journey with no less nattering credentials. 

Gentlemen, you are to be congratulated upon beginning the study 
of the science of medicine in its healthiest period of development. 
The roads have been opened in every part of its domain, and there 
is a freedom of movement and a freedom of thought that has never 
before existed to the same degree. 

There was a period, and it held sway long, in which a system es- 
tablished by some leading spirit in the profession governed the prac- 
tice of medicine. This system controlled the thoughts of medical 
men, until another leading mind arose and supplanted it by a new 
system. At certain periods there were several systems, each with 
its trusty followers, contending bitterly for the supremacy. This 
may with propriety be designated as the aristocratic age of medicine. 
This age accorded either to a single individual or to a privileged 
class the prerogative to do the thinking for those whom they con- 
sidered the plebeians of the profession. They reared their struc- 
tures and gave them fine proportions, but they could not stand 
the test of time. They began to build in the wrong way. They 
first put up their theoretical framework, and then endeavored to 
close the walls by facts as their building material. But facts are 
stubborn things; they will not fit in every place in which they are 
put, neither will they permit themselves to be hewn into any re- 
quired shape; so these builders were compelled to make use of a 
16 



230 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

very liberal application of the plaster of false reasoning to give 
their walls the appearance of solidity. These walls readily yielded, 
and required propping on all sides, and it was comparatively easy 
work for the founder of a new system to exhibit the weakness of 
previously existing structures. The profession, discovering from 
time to time that it had been held in bondage to false doctrines, 
threw off the yoke, but failed to establish its liberty, for in de- 
posing one master it swore allegiance to another. 

But the storm finally came; the monarchs were dethroned, and 
their edifices crumbled to the ground. Every hand was lifted 
against something, nothing was regarded as holy, and destruction 
became the order of the day. This was the nihilistic period. It 
raged fiercely, but was short-lived. Nothing could grow at such 
a time, for the eye delighted to look upon the waste, and ruins 
became the prominent objects in the landscape. 

A brighter day has dawned, and its genial warmth has imparted 
new life. The rubbish has been cleared away, the solid building 
material has been reclaimed, and the fallacious theories have been 
placed as headstones upon the graves of their founders. Every- 
where the call for fresh material is heard, and everywhere it is 
earnestly responded to. But more and more building material is 
required, and we are charged, and you will be charged, to be 
assiduous in the search for it. The work which has been accom- 
plished thus far is great, and the rejoicing in its contemplation is 
great, for it is the work of the many, of the many who have delved 
unremittingly in every department, who have sought truth for 
truth's sake, and who have placed the foundation of the new edifice 
upon solid ground, and not upon the sand. This is the age of 
honest work, and the work is cheerfully done, for the laborer dreads 
not the ban, and owes allegiance but to truth. This is the age of 
freedom, the mind is disenthralled; and where the mind is free, 
the hands are active. 



Addresses. 231 

The development of the science in recent times is to be regarded 
as of an especially healthy character, for a steady growth is to be 
observed in every distinct part thereof; while in time past all the 
talent in the profession was often drawn to the cultivation of cer- 
tain parts, and others were allowed to wither. A body that does 
not enjoy an equable growth will necessarily become deformed. 

I say again, gentlemen, that you are to be congratulated upon 
entering the study of medicine at this time, when in your first steps 
you can place your feet upon solid ground, and when in your 
further journey you are encouraged by the bright picture reflected 
in the future. You need not fear the volcano nor dread the hur- 
ricanes, for what has been gained is imperishable. Errors are 
made now, and will be made in the future as they have been made 
in the past, but no new material will be accepted as a building-stone 
that has not been thoroughly tested. The structure which is now 
rearing is not like the Grecian temple, whose charms rest in its 
finished beauty, and which admits of neither change nor ornamen- 
tation, for either would destroy its character; but more like the 
Gothic structure, which is never so complete but that it will admit 
of additions and improvements, which neither mar its beauty nor 
encroach upon its usefulness. 

In choosing the profession of medicine you not only enter the 
service of science, but you devote yourselves to the cause of hu- 
manity. It demands both the cultivation of the intellect and the 
highest refinement of the soul. There is no reward which you 
should value higher than the satisfaction of knowing that you have 
relieved human suffering, that you have averted death. Be bold 
when duty calls you to perform an heroic act, but not so cold that 
you can witness human misery without feeling pity. An unfeeling 
man is not only unworthy of becoming a physician, but he will 
never find a real satisfaction in the pursuit of the profession. Pe- 
cuniary reward will not compensate him for the sacrifice of per- 



232 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

sonal comfort which the practice of medicine requires to so great 
an extent, and in assuming the virtues which its sacred ministra- 
tions demand he will constantly be reminded of his unworthiness. 

The true physician loves his profession, for he sees in it the 
consummation of the highest aims of science. He is forced to 
witness many a sad scene, and suffer many a dreaded catastrophe, 
but he finds strength in the verdict of that high tribunal within 
him which tells him that he has done his duty well. And when 
the storms are over and the clouds have disappeared and the bright 
sunshine of gladness again animates the hearts that were heavy 
with despair, he can enter in and partake of the joys of others 
made happy, as is the privilege only of the sympathetic and the 
pure. 

Gentlemen, you have entered upon a holy mission; God speed 
you in your undertaking. 



ADDRESS AT THE OPENING OP THE NEW CITY HOS- 
PITAL, JANUARY 1, 1890. 

Gentlemen : 

You have been invited to join us this evening in commemorating 
an event which, while it marks a new era in the history of the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons, is, we imagine, not without 
interest to the general medical profession. Indeed, inasmuch as 
hospitals occupy a most prominent place among those institutions 
which contribute to make a city great, the acquisition of this new 
hospital, constructed as it is upon the most approved plans of 
modern sanitation, located as it is in the very heart of the city, 
where a hospital is most urgently needed, and adding as it does so 
conspicuously to the architectural achievements of Baltimore, must 
awaken a just pride in every one who feels an interest in the fame 
of our fair city. 

The College of Physicians and Surgeons, in assuming the medi- 
cal charge of this institution, which will be devoted henceforth to 
the cure of disease and the alleviation of suffering where disease 
is beyond cure, feels that now, in responding to the appeals of suffer- 
ing humanity, it will be in a better position than ever to meet 
the demands of the modern advancement of our science. 

And, although we cannot overestimate the blessings of a well- 
equipped hospital to the sick, the suffering, and the maimed, when 
it is devoted to the purposes of medical instruction, as this institu- 
tion will largely be, its benefits will not be limited to those who 
have been cared for within its walls, but will extend far beyond its 
confines, beyond the limits of the city, beyond the boundaries of 
the State. Such a hospital may properly be considered as a labora- 



234 Aaeon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

tory of clinical medicine and surgery where the manifestations of 
disease and the effects of remedies are to be subjected to the most 
approved methods of scientific investigation. Here the teacher gets 
his best experience, here the student receives his most useful lessons. 

Eejoicing as we naturally must in contemplating the greatly im- 
proved clinical facilities which this Hospital confers upon the Col- 
lege, we are not at all ashamed to refer on this occasion to what 
the school has accomplished in this respect in the past. 

Beginning its career in 1872 with no other capital but a faculty, 
a faculty which was determined to succeed and which soon showed 
that it was qualified for and deserving of success, the college was 
as early as 1874 enabled, through the liberality of the State of 
Maryland, to establish the Maternite Hospital. That hospital not 
only introduced a new benevolence into our city, but furnished the 
first opportunity for clinical instruction in midwifery in Baltimore. 
In the latter respect it may properly be claimed that it was a 
pioneer, if not the pioneer, in this country. The Maternite has 
been in active operation ever since, and, when we regard the pur- 
poses it was intended to fulfil, it is still the leading institution of 
its kind. The acquisition from the Washington University, in 1878, 
of the City Hospital, which henceforth will be spoken of as the 
old City Hospital, opened a new future for the college. From that 
time on it has rested upon a solid foundation. We had now a gen- 
eral hospital, offering abundance of material for clinical instruc- 
tion ; besides which we had secured the alliance of the good Sisters 
of Mercy for that part of the work which few could do so well, and 
none could do better. 

The building was not a pretentious one. It had been built for 
a city school, was eventually regarded as unsuited for that purpose, 
and was finally abandoned. Truly we may exclaim with the 
Psalmist, "The stone which the builders refused is become the 
head stone of the corner ! " Yea ! it has been the cornerstone upon 



Addresses. 235 

which the college has safely rested these many years, and, although 
it is now supplanted by the grand hospital in which we meet to- 
night, we shall ever hold its past record in grateful remembrance. 
It has done good work in the past. Thousands have received a 
friendly welcome within its walls, and, although it was unsuited 
in many respects for the purposes of a hospital, it has furnished 
the opportunity of exemplifying how much good can be done even 
under unfavorable circumstances. In one respect at least, however, 
it has shown a preeminent suitableness. It has always been nearest 
to most of those unfortunate ones who need speedy help. Placed 
in the heart of the city, where the greatest commercial and industrial 
activity prevails and casualties are most common, it was enabled 
to extend aid without too much delay. Its claims in this respect 
have been generally acknowledged. Among the many advantages 
this new City Hospital will offer, is the advantage of the location it 
has inherited from its predecessor, and this inheritance will prove 
no mean one, for this alone will insure its maintenance for all future 
time. What the old building lacked in the comforts which are now 
demanded of a hospital was largely compensated for by the suc- 
cessful management and humane influence of the Sisters of Mercy, 
and by the assiduous and skillful attention of its medical staff. 
We never overlooked its deficiencies and we directed our best ener- 
gies to correct them at an early date. There was a great deal to 
encourage us to resume our work in this direction, although we 
had repeatedly met with failure. The need of more room urgently 
demanded that the hospital should be enlarged in some way. Our 
faithful allies, the good sisters, cheered us and inspired us with 
new hopes when the prospects seemed unpromising, but what 
encouraged us most was an unswerving faith that the City Spring 
lot had been providentially reserved for the noble object it now 
fulfils. It had become perfectly useless for the purposes for which 
it was originally given to the city. That class of respectable citizens 



236 Aaeon Friedenwald, M. D. 

who had sought the shade of its beautiful trees and refreshment 
from its limpid stream in days gone by had long disappeared. The 
vagrant and the tramp had established their dominion there. The 
water from the spring had become impure and was condemned. 
The fountain that remained, playing as it did from the city water 
supply, was a sham, and was in this respect in perfect harmony 
with the character which the entire place had assumed. The place 
had altogether lost its former cheerfulness. Even the old keeper, 
though willing to hold his position, seemed dissatisfied with his lot. 
"Under these circumstances we hoped that the city would be willing 
to donate it to the use of a great charity. Several City Councils 
approved of the bills that were presented, but the project was re- 
peatedly defeated before the mayor by an opposition which, un- 
fortunately, came from a direction that justified the suspicion that 
it was not inspired by the best motives. But I shall say nothing 
further of this. This magnificent hospital now stands upon that 
long coveted lot, and " Charity," 'tis said, " covereth a multitude of 
sins." 

By an agreement entered into between the Sisters of Mercy and 
the College of Physicians and Surgeons the Hospital eecures in 
perpetuity the gratuitous services of the faculty as its medical staff, 
while the College is granted in perpetuity the privilege of clinical 
instruction which it enjoyed in the old hospital. The advantages 
which the College gains by the opening of this new Hospital are not 
limited to the Hospital itself. We shall henceforth find more room 
in the old building for the purposes of the College proper, and we 
design in the near future to remodel the old building so that we 
shall be amply supplied with physiological, chemical, and pathologi- 
cal laboratories under one roof, together with a proper museum and 
all other requisites demanded of a first-class medical college. 

At the beginning of my remarks I ventured to say that the 
opening of this hospital was not without interest to the general 



Addresses. 237 

medical profession. The work done in hospitals contributes largely 
to the general advancement of our science, and no medical man 
with the proper spirit can remain indifferent to their influence. 
Practitioners of medicine who desire to visit our clinics will meet 
with a cordial welcome. 

Much as may be said in favor of the advantages which flow from 
this hospital to the College, and great as may be the interest of 
the medical profession in its successful operation, the consideration 
which gives it its paramount importance is the good which it is 
destined to accomplish for those seeking relief from disease. By 
day and by night its portals will ever be open to those who may 
be in need of its benefits. A faithful physician will always be 
found at his post of duty ready to extend medical aid, and a kind 
Sister will never be absent when her tender care may be needed. 
The disease which brings the applicant to the hospital is the only 
recommendation which he will require for his admission. Neither 
religious distinctions nor race prejudice will ever find consideration 
here. 

The city of Baltimore may justly congratulate itself upon the 
acquisition of a hospital of this character, and it owes a deep debt 
of gratitude to our good Sisters of Mercy. The erection of a 
building of such magnificent proportions as this hospital presents, 
without any means except those hoped for from the charitably 
disposed, seemed almost an impossibility. They dared to attempt 
what seemed impossible, and they have been successful. 

It was faith that inspired our good sisters to choose a life of 
absolute duty and sacrifice, it was faith that enabled them, when 
necessary, to brave the dangers of the battlefield and the ravages 
of pestilence, and it was faith in a generosity of this community 
which encouraged them to undertake this stupendous work. 

Although they have the legal title to this property, the Hospital 
is a free offering to Baltimore, a sacred trust of which they are 



238 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

but the faithful custodians. They look for no reward, for them- 
selves, but it is eminently proper that this great work of theirs be 
fitly appreciated, and that tangible encouragement be freely ex- 
tended to them in the future whenever needed. 



ADDRESS DELIVERED AT THE CELEBRATION OP THE 
SEVENTIETH BIRTHDAY OF PROFESSOR VIRCHOW, 
HELD IN THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY, 
OCTOBER 13, 1891. 

Ladies and Gentlemen : 

Thirty years ago it was my good fortune to be a pupil of the 
great man whom we desire to honor on this occasion. He was 
then in the prime of life, and had a record which made him the 
most prominent figure among the eminent men of the medical 
faculty of the University of Berlin. Most of his associates of that 
period have long since passed away, and all have attained great 
distinction, but Virchow still remains the acknowledged master. 
Time has shown neither faltering in his work nor waning in his 
power. In contemplating the vast activity which he has displayed 
in the various fields upon which he has brought his giant intellect 
to bear, and in computing the aggregate of what he has accom- 
plished, we arrive at a result of which the medical profession is 
justly proud and for which the whole world must be grateful. It 
is not his work alone, however, nor the discoveries that he has made 
that challenges our admiration, but it is that stamp of nobility 
which characterizes his remarkable career throughout, from its 
brilliant beginning in Berlin, during the time when his genius 
shone resplendently in Wiirzburg, and all through that long and all- 
important period since his triumphal return to the Prussian capital. 
Great as he stands as a scientist, towering far above all who have 
worked in the same territory, preeminence must be awarded him 
for his broad interests and brilliant achievements in other domains. 
Wherever we enter upon the study of his work, and wherever our 
thoughts may wander in estimating its full significance, we in- 



240 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

evitably reach a point whence we must return to the man himself. 
He has not moulded with lifeless clay, for in his work there breathes 
a living soul. He has built well, for what he has built has stood 
the test of time, and he has built so that others could build thereon. 
Besides the merit of his own gigantic work, we cannot fail to take 
into account, in estimating the benefit he has been to science, the 
good work done by others through his inspiration. Pathology, 
through his touch, received a regeneration, and what it has become 
since he entered its field is largly due to his contributions and his 
influence. If he had done nothing else, this alone would entitle 
him to be placed side by side with the greatest men of any time. 
But his genius required a wider scope. In anthropology he has 
become an acknowledged authority, and he seems to be as fully at 
home in the one as in the other great branch of science. All the 
expenditure of energy which these labors demanded did not overtax 
our hero. He had sufficient force in reserve to enable him to 
acquire great distinction in quite a different field. The speeches 
which he made to the workingmen of Berlin in '48 were not the 
emanations of a wild young brain. They indicated the deep con- 
victions that governed the man in his start in life, and which re- 
mained an inseparable part of him when he reached high position 
and his genius had been universally acknowledged. His keen eye, 
which saw disease in the human body as it seldom was seen before, 
did not fail to detect what was morbid in the body politic. The 
clearness with which he was able to demonstrate his classical autop- 
sies, the brilliancy of his general lectures, the instructive lessons 
that followed those microscopes as they moved along the little 
railway before his class, have their analogy in the demonstrative, 
brilliant, and instructive character which marks his activity in 
legislative bodies. He has been no inconsiderable factor in that 
movement which has made Berlin the model municipality. In all 
the great questions which have occupied the German Parliament his 



Addresses. 241 

voice was heard arid had to be listened to. True as he has always 
been to the interests of the medical profession, devoted as he has 
remained through life to science in general, he has ever been equally 
loyal to his convictions. A man like Virchow must at times neces- 
sarily be aggressive. To establish a fact often involves a combat 
with those who advocate an error, and in showing up wrong the 
wrong-doer cannot always be spared. He never failed in the moral 
courage demanded by his duty. In the earliest part of his career 
as a pathologist he protested against making pathology the " Eum- 
pelkammer " of medicine, and there was no authority so great that 
he would leave it unchallenged in the statement of an error. This 
moral courage stood by him in '48, and characterized him when he 
had to meet in intellectual combat the " man of blood and iron." 

The medical profession rejoices in claiming such a member; 
Germany can point with pride to such a son; the world must feel 
blessed in such a citizen. 



MEMOIR OP DR. GEORGE H. ROHE, READ AT THE 
SPRING MEETING OF THE MARYLAND PUBLIC 
HEALTH ASSOCIATION, MAY 23, 1901. 

Ladies and Gentlemen : 

The Maryland Public Health Association, in devoting a part of 
its annual meeting to the presentation of a work of art to the 
Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland, as a tribute to the 
memory of Dr. George H. Rohe, furnishes a fitting opportunity 
for the review of the life of one who, in a remarkable way, rose 
to eminence in the medical profession; and for the analysis of 
those qualities of head and heart which endeared him to a host 
of friends and won for him the esteem of the community. 

The value of a man cannot be fully estimated by what he has 
made himself unless one considers out of what he has made him- 
self. It is not at all rare to find that those who have won dis- 
tinction have risen from obscurity and that their success in life 
has followed a severe struggle against odds. The combination of 
native talents and energy, under the influence of an honorable 
ambition, is a mighty power which is sure to secure recognition. 
We often find, however, that those who have developed in this 
way powers by which they have secured prominence for themselves 
often reveal a lack of harmony in their intellectual and social 
qualities. In considering the character of Dr. Rohe, those who 
knew him well will at once concede that his was a symmetrical 
growth; that the moral, social, and intellectual elements in his 
organization were equally vigorous. . . . 

Having known him as a lad and observed him preparing himself 
for and entering the medical profession, and having been intimately 
associated with him for many years as a colleague in the faculty 



Addresses. 243 

of the College of Physicians and Surgeons, and having enjoyed his 
warm friendship uninterruptedly throughout this period till the 
time of his death, it is difficult for me to confine myself, in what 
I shall have to say of him, to the subject that has been assigned 
to me on this occasion — his "merits as a teacher." There are 
those among his many pupils upon whom this duty would more 
properly devolve. Testimony from such source would have the 
advantage of coming at first hand, and would give more effective 
expression to the thoroughness with which he did his work, the 
facility with which he made clear to others what he knew so well 
himself, and the congenial relation which existed between him and 
his pupils, and it would also elicit the acknowledgment of the 
gratitude due him from them, than which no worthier tribute could 
be offered on this occasion. 

As it is, I shall consider myself their spokesman, and will try, 
as well as I can, to tell their story, as they often communicated it 
to me when speaking of him as their teacher. It was recognized 
as one of the most conspicuous features of his lectures that they 
bore the evidence of . . . careful and painstaking preparation. This 
showed that he was thoroughly in earnest, that he worked cheerfully 
himself and deemed his pupils worthy of his best efforts. The 
effect of such work in awakening interest is obvious. His earnest- 
ness never assumed that rigidity of character which is liable to 
reflect a sombre coloring. He could be everything but sombre. 
The kindness of the smile with which he stepped into the lecture 
hall, the unfailing boutonniere offering its salutation, his happy 
facult} r of illustration, and his keen sense of humor combined to 
lend a cheerfulness to his lectures which made them both interest- 
ing and attractive. It cannot be claimed that he was a gifted 
speaker, but he was always at his ease when he spoke, was definite 
and clear in his statements, and put his hearers at their ease. His 
irrepressible fondness for fun enabled him to relish the pranks 



244 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

for which the medical student is so notorious, and what in this 
respect would have been an annoyance to others did not disturb 
him in the least. In his intercourse with the students, his cordial 
nature drew them close to him, rendered him approachable and 
responsive ; and ... his bearing was ever characterized by a grace- 
ful and becoming dignity. He taught a number of branches at 
various times, . . . shifting rather rapidly from one chair to an- 
other, and he seemed equally at home in all of them. 

In pursuing the study of his qualities as a teacher, I need not 
draw further from the testimony of his pupils, but can safely rely 
upon what I know of them myself. His adaptability to new 
situations was most remarkable. His transfer from Dermatology 
and Hygiene to Obstetrics, and, a little later, to Therapeutics and 
Mental Diseases, was seemingly effected without the slightest incon- 
venience to himself, and his skill in dealing with these varied sub- 
jects was generally regarded as equal in them all. While it must 
be conceded that he had an extraordinary facility in acquiring 
new knowledge rapidly, which was especially exemplified in what 
he accomplished in the treatment of the insane, there can be no 
doubt that his versatile achievements must be attributed in greater 
measure to the extensive fund of knowledge which he had carefully 
stored up and upon which he could freely draw at all times. We 
are warranted in assuming this by the character and variety of his 
contributions to medical science. His close professional friends 
had such a regard for the completeness of his knowledge of many 
subjects in medicine that they often indulged in the pleasantry of 
inquiring of him what was his most recent specialty. He enjoyed 
such pleasantries exceedingly. Soon after' his appointment as 
Superintendent of Spring Grove Asylum, he was asked when he 
expected to publish his work on mental diseases. That work did 
not appear, but a work of a more lasting character stands to his 
credit at Springfield. This work of his will, no doubt, go through 



Addresses. 245 

many more editions than can be expected for any modern medical 
volume. 

There is another side from which Eohe's achievements must be 
considered here. He was a man of broad culture, had a wide 
acquaintance with general science and the most varied literature, 
and he acquired a style in his contributions which at once sug- 
gested that he must have had the advantages of a thorough academic 
training. 

Furthermore, there must be remembered on this occasion his 
refined tastes, his charm of manner, and the graceful freedom of 
his movements, which characterized him as a man of the world, 
and strongly suggested that he must have been reared in luxury 
and under the tenderest care. . . . Probably what conduced most 
powerfully to make him the successful teacher in medicine that 
he became was his very early experience as a teacher, in which he 
continued for many, many years. It was surely a labor of love, 
for through this long period he was the sole and devoted teacher 
of himself. As a lad of twelve years, I found him in the office of 
my friend, the late Dr. Augustus F. Erich, performing the func- 
tions of an office boy. He continued this work during the winter 
months, year after year, while during the summer he helped his 
widowed mother to work a small truck farm, located a few miles 
from this city. At the early age of twelve years he left school 
and received no instruction, save what he gave himself, until he 
entered the University of Maryland Medical School, in 1870. Dr. 
Erich early made prediction that the boy would make something 
creditable of himself, for he noticed his thirst for knowledge, and 
often found him late at night poring over his books. The doctor 
kindly allowed him the use of his library, and directed him, to 
some degree, in the selection of reading matter, which, no doubt, 
contributed greatly to his early progress. When we consider the 
rugged road over which he had to pass to reach his goal, and the 
little aid he received in the hard work he had undertaken, we 
17 



246 Aabon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

cannot but marvel at the success he attained. He was one of those 
who recognize early in life that they have certain endowments which 
must not be allowed to go to waste ; and, although the circumstances 
did not seem propitious, he felt the moral obligation to work, to 
work incessantly, in order to prove himself worthy of the trust 
reposed in him. It was this consciousness which stood him in 
good stead in his rather varied career. He had so often found 
his capabilities to meet severe tests that he felt he could confidently 
rely upon them. 

There are those who put too low an estimate on what they are 
capable of doing, and fail in life because they start out and pursue 
their way so timidly that their opportunities are snatched from 
them when within their very grasp. There are others whose con- 
ceit so magnifies their powers that they are moved by temerity to 
undertake anything. They stumble at every step, wander reck- 
lessly, lose themselves and come to grief in a thousand ways. But 
there are also those who have that vision which enables them to 
see themselves exactly as they are. They have tested themselves 
and found the degree of strain they can safely bear; they have 
measured their talents and know how far they will reach; they 
have gauged their capacity and know what they can take in. These 
usually reap the full advantage of their powers; go through life 
safely, steadily advancing, and ultimately reaching their destina- 
tion. 

Of the latter class Dr. Eohe was an eminent example. He knew 
the strength of every fibre within him. He felt that the ground 
upon which he stood was firm ; and, when he placed all his energies 
in a new venture, he was sure that he had invested safely. Pears 
did not haunt, nor obstacles deter him. He assumed new positions 
as if they were but everyday affairs; and, the newer they were to 
him, the greater was the credit that he gained in filling them. Such 
was Rohe, the teacher ; such was Eohe, the man : the teacher because 
he was such a man ; the man because he was such a teacher. 



EESPONSE TO THE TOAST, "OUR CANDIDATES FOE 
GEADUATION, MAY THEY ALL PASS A SUCCESSFUL 
EXAMINATION," AT A BANQUET GIVEN BY THE 
FACULTY OF THE COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS AND 
SURGEONS, JANUAEY 1, 1880. 

Gentlemen : 

I feel that I can cheerfully respond to the sentiment just an- 
nounced, for, judging from the pleasant countenances of the gen- 
tlemen who form the subject of the toast, we need feel no great 
solicitude with regard to the manner in which they will acquit 
themselves in the approaching struggle. During the past week 
business men all over the country have been engaged in preparing 
accurate accounts of assets and liabilities, so that in comparing 
them they might be able to judge of their prospects in the year 
1880; and, as the one or the other has preponderated, work will be 
resumed either under the encouragement of anticipated success, 
or under the paralyzing influence of impending failure. 

I presume that during the recent vacation you have been some- 
what similarly engaged, for the year 1880 will be a very eventful 
one to you. You have no doubt carefully examined into the char- 
acter of your assets, composed of the knowledge you have acquired, 
and of your liabilities, consisting of the knowledge you will be ex- 
pected to give evidence of; and, though you may not be permitted 
to exult over any very great excess of your assets, you are no doubt 
able to obtain such a satisfactory report from your balance sheet 
that it will enable you to resume your labor with clear heads and 
light hearts. You may be somewhat horrified by the long list of 



248 Aaeon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

items for which, you will have to answer in the various accounts, 
but the more ambitious among you have probably been convinced 
already, during the terrible ordeal of quizzing to which you have 
been subjected for the past three months, that in the bright lexicon 
of youth there is no such word as fail; and to those among you 
who are somewhat less sanguine, I would whisper by way of en- 
couragement that their creditors are not Shylocks, but clever fel- 
lows who will extend an honorable release for a little less than one 
hundred cents on the dollar. 

There is Anatomy for example, usually pictured as a cold, 
austere, uncompromising individual; you will find him a warm- 
hearted, responsive creditor, who will gladly accept your returns 
of old bones, debris of viscera, the old trunks of some [blood] 
vessels, provided that you know the point from which they sail and 
the harbor which they reach, and that you deliver them in a pre- 
sentable shape; and let me tell you confidentially that that can be 
accomplished by encasing them in a plaster of Paris jacket. 1 

Physiology will parade a long list of questions concerning res- 
piration, circulation, digestion, assimilation, nutrition, reproduc- 
tion, and so on; but he is so ashamed of the fact that there are 
so many questions in his department which he cannot answer that 
he will call it square if you will simply tell how to cure whooping 
cough, or in the event that you have not made this discovery, 
acquaint him with the prophylaxis of scarlatina; every old woman 
can tell you that. 2 

Surgery will disappoint you most. He will confront you with 
grim visage, with glittering steel, and will savor of blood, and 
though you have known him not to give five minutes grace when 

1 The Professor of Anatomy also held the chair of Orthopedic Surgery. 

2 Physiology and Diseases of Children were taught by the same 
professor. 



Addbesses. 249 

an obligation was due him at nine o'clock in the morning,' he is 
not what he appears to be; he purposes to heal and not to wound, 
and when he sometimes premeditates cruelty it does not hurt any- 
body, for he collapses under the idea himself. 

The venerable form that will appear to you in the department of 
nervous diseases and clinical medicine has so long been engaged 
in the discussion of historical, political, religious, and even scientific 
subjects, in which he occasionally takes one side and then the other, 
and often both, that he might forgive you if you answer his ques- 
tions correctly, but he would decidedly prefer for you to prove to 
him that he was wrong. The style of argument that you are to 
employ to accomplish this end, will, as you know, be taught gratis 
every Sunday afternoon in the Society' for Free Discussions. 

Gynecology will lead you in dark and tortuous recesses where 
dreadful crimes are often perpetrated, by surgeons of course, in 
regard to which you will have to give evidence, and if you fail to 
describe accurately the dreadful scenes ... it may be a satis- 
faction for you to know that the mistakes which you may make in 
this department will be just as difficult to detect as those made by 
very great gynecologists. 

One thing of importance, gentlemen; it will not do to be too 
modest, and to show you a good example in this respect I will speak 
now of myself, before mentioning any more of my colleagues. I 
shall not expect you to know more than I taught you ; in this regard 
I may be more liberal than some gentlemen whom I have not men- 
tioned. 

Thus far I have indicated to you how to secure a majority of 
votes, and this is all that is required. I should be extremely 
obliged to you after you have passed the ordeal, if you furnish me 

3 His lecture hour. 



250 Aaron Fkiedenwald, M. D. 

with some points in reference to the faculty which I have not men- 
tioned, so that I can make some useful revelations to the class that 
is to succeed you. 

In conclusion, permit me to wish you a happy New Year and to 
indulge the hope of soon grasping your hands to congratulate you 
on the most creditable results of your examinations. 



EESPONSE TO THE TOAST OF "THE FACULTY," AT 
THE BANQUET OE THE ALUMNI OF THE COLLEGE 
OF PHYSICIANS AND SUEGEONS, MAECH 1, 1882. 

Gentlemen : 

I deem it a great compliment, after talking so much to you 
during the past winter and often feeling that I had overtaxed your 
patience, that you signify willingness to have me speak again on 
this occasion. I must confess that I am not reluctant to speak to 
you now, for I am anxious to embrace this opportunity to congratu- 
late you upon the attainment of the honor which bestows upon you 
fellowship in an honored profession, and to wish you uninter- 
rupted success in the new career which you now begin. 

The struggle has ended, and many an intense anxiety has sub- 
sided, many an annoying fear has been dispelled, and, amid the 
sweet strains of music and floral tributes from loving hands, and 
the hearty plaudits ... of friends, you have been invested with the 
badge which admits you to membership in a noble fraternity. The 
faculty which has bestowed upon you this badge feels great pride 
that it has been enabled to reinforce the profession with such solid 
material, not because there has been any very apparent scarcity of 
physicians, but because you who now enter the old ranks as new 
men give so much promise of also becoming true men in your 
fidelity to our ancient creed, embracing devotion to service and 
duty to humanity. 

It is one of the greatest enjoyments of this faculty to meet its 
graduates around the festive board at this season, to witness their 
joy, and to enter into the spirit of their fresh enthusiasm. But a 
few days ago and there were but few among you that would not 



252 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

have readily answered as clinical objects to demonstrate pro- 
nounced anaemia; your emaciated forms appeared to invoke a fresh 
supply of nourishment, and told the mournful tale of inexpressible 
waste; and your unstrung nervous system and your bleared eyes 
bore unmistakable testimony to your close companionship with the 
midnight lamp. But the sudden transfusion which this faculty 
has practised upon you has returned the bloom to your cheeks, has 
filled up the hollow places, has extended buoyancy to your nerves, 
and made your eyes sparkle with delight. What a transformation ! 
And as you carried off so proudly the significant roll of sheepskin, 
you carried with you the consciousness that you had done your duty 
well, and no doubt most of you feel that you are masters of the 
situation. This is a pleasant illusion, and I would not for the 
world be so cruel as to disturb it on this occasion. Your diploma 
is very much like the letter of credit with which the traveller pro- 
vides himself before sailing on his journey ; he first makes a deposit 
with some banking firm, for which he receives the certificate 
which insures the freedom of his future movements. You have 
also made a deposit before starting upon your journey; you have 
deposited the evidence that you have that mental fund which will 
entitle you to the proper recognition from the profession wherever 
you will go, and gain for you in the community in which you will 
live that respect to which the skulking itinerant quack can never 
aspire. 

The letter of credit that we issue differs from that coming from 
a banking house in one very important particular, in that the 
former is simply signed by the collective name of the firm, while 
we sign our individual names. Well, this is not amiss, for in study- 
ing the individual signatures you may learn very important les- 
sons. There is O.'s signature, very little, straight up and down; 
even his O's have an appearance of straightness that one oould 
hardly suppose a round thing could be made to assume, which he 



Addresses. 253 

no doubt intends should remind you of the rectitude of character 
which is so indispensable to the true physician, and warn you of 
those crooked things to which there are so many temptations. 

Next follows the name of Lynch ; what an amount of positiveness 
appears in that signature ! Obstinacy, I hear some one whisper, 
but that's a villainous mistake; I will refute the calumny; every- 
one can read in that signature that, no matter what Gr. and the 
whole world may say, it is as safe to give a teaspoonful of 
Veratrum Viride as it is to administer a restorative cordial, and 
further that he will allow no man and no book to dictate to him 
the dose of quinine which is requisite to constitute the abortive 
treatment of typhoid fever. I think I could improve the relation 
of the first letter of his name with the rest, but I shall not say 
anything about it, for a man that will not move an " inch " can 
hardly be expected to move an " ell." 

L. signs next; what symmetry of letters, emblematical of the 
completeness of his character; and, though all know his fixedness 
of purpose, we find one letter leaning a little one way, and another 
inclining in another direction, which means that the true gentle- 
man, of whom he is the type, will always bend a little whenever 
friendship makes the demand or courtesy whispers its delicate 
appeal. 

The next name is a perfect photograph of E: it is as broad as 
it is long; it looks a little blunt, but you know he knows of no 
equivocation or circumlocution; what he says he wants to be 
understood, and what he writes he wants to be thoroughly legible. 
So it seems that he always signs his name with the sharp point of a 
sponge tent, though I don't want to be understood as saying that 
it is only with the sponge tent that he has made his mark. 

B.'s signature would serve a good purpose on the first line of any 
copy-book; it is a perfect piece of penmanship. Whenever he 
signs his name he seems to be under the inspiration flowing from 



254 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

the contemplation of some perfect piece of Grecian statuary; he 
worships at the shrine of beauty; he cannot bear the least asym- 
metry, and that is what makes him such a good orthopedic surgeon ; 
he hints to you in that signature to allow no deformity to develop, 
. . . and to slap on the plaster jacket wherever you successfully 
can. 

C. cleverly reminds you of all the anastomosis which it will be 
necessary for you to know in your future surgical practice. How 
deftly are those letters entwined ! The initial of his middle name 
will remind you somewhat of a Bridge of Sighs, typifying his ex- 
amination, a painful eternity, for it is without beginning, without 
end. 

A. makes a dash here, a dash there, and so his signature is 
evolved; and, though he dashes fearlessly in every direction, he 
never misses his mark. He reminds you not to keep your minds in 
one direction; to live in medicine but not to bury yourselves in it; 
to cultivate your mind with useful knowledge from every source. 

G.'s signature tells a whole history of experiences of strange 
hallucinations, of fearful storms on the sea of life, but there issues 
from it the triumphant exclamation, Eichard is himself again ! 

S.'s signature represents the condition of incomplete crystal- 
lization; he can write a great deal better than he would have it 
appear, but he wishes to hint to you that, though you have all 
passed brilliant examinations in his branch, there is still a 
good deal of chemistry for you to learn. His signature must have 
been seen by the boy of whom it was told that he was caught doing 
something wrong, but was accorded the privilege of choosing his 
punishment; he wanted it to be like Italian penmanship, the up- 
strokes heavy, the down-strokes light. S.'s up-strokes have the 
lightness of hydrogen gas, his down-strokes the powerful effect of 
nitric acid. 

Neither of myself nor of my signature shall I speak on this oc- 



Addresses. 255 

casion, not that I am so modest that I fear that nothing remarkable 
could be found in either, but because I am the only fellow with 
whom I have had an intimate acquaintance, whom I have not yet 
found out. Indifferent as I may be to know the opinion of some, 
I confess, gentlemen, that I shall always feel proud to have your 
good opinion, and to live in your kind remembrance. 



RESPONSE TO A TOAST AT THE ANNUAL BANQUET OF 
THE ALUMNI OP THE COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS 
AND SURGEONS, MAECH 3, 1884. 

Gentlemen : 

The Alumni of the College of Physicians and Surgeons receive 
to-day one hundred and twenty-seven new recruits. These are 
strangers to those of you who may be looked upon as . . . vet- 
erans. It is well that you should become better acquainted with 
one another, and it is perhaps not out of place that one of the 
faculty who knows both parties should tell the one who the other 
is. I will probably not be charged with violating the rules of 
propriety when I give age the precedence, and so I shall address 
myself to the older ones first. The one hundred and twenty-seven 
to whom we ask you to-day to extend the hand of fellowship have 
given every evidence in the examinations which they have just fin- 
ished that they are made of the proper stuff. They have exhibited 
such earnestness of purpose and such unwavering diligence during 
the whole course of their work that we are warranted in the pre- 
diction that they will continue to reflect credit upon their Alma 
Mater in the future. That they are " honorable men," and that 
they have " well-equipped themselves for the duties of the profes- 
sion " in which they shall soon enroll themselves as members, the 
diploma which will be bestowed upon them to-morrow will serve as 
an ample credential. But this is perhaps not all that you want 
to know about them, satisfactory as this information must be. 
You would like, no doubt, also to know what else they have learned, 
or rather what they have not forgotten, and let me say here that 
the traditions that you have bequeathed to them have been pre- 



Addresses. 257 

served with sacred care. The same scenes were exhibited between 
the acts as in days of yore. The same music resounded in the halls 
between the lectures as in those days when you were the chor- 
isters, sung, perhaps, with a little more fervor, and with a stray 
peanut, now and then, indicating a higher " pitch." If you could 
have stood with us in the circle and gazed upon the scene in the 
very first row, you would have been convinced that others could 
suffer a leg being out of place as well as you did in times gone 
by. The only accidents which were not so readily repaired 
and were a little more serious in their character, were quite a 
number of fractures of legs, of course I mean the legs of chairs. 
As with you, this violent spirit was indulged in only by nobody, 
and only in this way was it discovered that there were nobodies in 
the class. We have continued to notice about the same propor- 
tion who would apparently go to sleep regularly during the lectures, 
and, as before, we were forced by the examinations which they 
passed to the conclusion that they must have slept with one ear 
open. To maintain full affiliation with former classes they have 
apparently been highly delighted with many a bad joke, and as 
mercilessly turned a deaf ear to many a good one. About the 
same number have told me in confidence about a certain joke of a 
certain professor (the only one he has), that they heard it once be- 
fore, probably to attract my attention to their memory. I hope I 
am not perpetrating a breach of confidence when I tell you that 
the various members of the faculty would willingly forgive every 
member of the class if he forgot the jokes which he heard in the 
previous session. 

And now a word to those that are initiated as new members on 
this occasion. In telling the older alumni how much you have 
been like them I have simultaneously told you how much they were 
like you during their college career. I have to add what they have 
been since. They have illustrated by their success in the profes- 



258 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

sion that when good seed is planted in proper soil wholesome fruit 
will plenteously follow. There are many among them of whom we 
are proud; there are none among them of whom we need be 
ashamed. They have all, no doubt, made mistakes, and profited 
by them. You will, no doubt, make some mistakes; and, if you 
could compare them with the mistakes that they have made, you 
would immediately detect the blood relationship by the great like- 
ness which they bear to each other. There is one mistake I warn 
you all not to make, and that is to remain single. We have one 
bachelor in the faculty expressly for the purpose of serving as a 
warning example. . . . 



ADDRESS DELIVERED AT THE ANNUAL BANQUET OF 
THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OF THE COLLEGE OF 
PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS, MARCH 12, 1885. 

Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Alumni Association: 
It is very pleasant indeed, after the hard work which the session 
just ended has entailed upon us, and the earnest times which 
marked its termination, to meet together and to rejoice together 
in the continued prosperity of your Alma Mater. It is pleasant to 
behold the veterans and the new recruits joining hands in the in- 
terest of the institution to which they owe their professional lives. 
It is to be hoped that the old soldiers who have been in the fight 
have glad tidings to bring to the young companions to whom they 
are now extending for the first time the hand of fellowship, and 
that their example of affection and constancy and devotion to duty 
may be felt and be appreciated, and inspire those who are putting 
on the armor and preparing for the battle for the first time. This 
is not the time to give advice nor to preach sermons, for you are 
all, no doubt, brimful of good resolutions to remain good men, to 
become reputable physicians, and always to remember kindly your 
Alma Mater. I have no doubt that you have all provided your- 
selves with the picture of the faculty, to be doubly sure that your 
affections will not be estranged from them in your journey through 
life. It is a very good idea. It is a great pity that the picture is 
not nearly so good. I have the group hanging in my office ; I must 
confess the only thing which I admire about it is the good com- 
pany in which I find myself. Professor 0., who is a great art critic, 
looked at it the other day when he honored me with a visit, and 
wanted to know whether it was a rogues' gallery. I pointed to the 



260 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

tallest figure, which looked more like him than anybody that I 
know, and said, " This is the biggest one " ; I alluded, of course, 
to the size. After all, photographs don't serve the purpose ex- 
actly. Even if you were provided with the very best and you 
came back after some years, you might not even recognize those 
whom they represented. I think we can learn something from the 
Chinese and Japanese. You are, no doubt, all aware that they 
have an entirely different notion of art from ours. We attempt 
to paint the thing as it is or was ; they place upon the canvas some- 
thing that suggests the thing, person, or idea which they wish to 
show. They have objects which, placed in the proper way, repre- 
sent joy, or grief, or battle, or victory, and so forth ; a crow, a cock 
perched upon a drum, and a dragon, are examples of these objects. 
I propose to prepare a picture of this kind for you, with your per- 
mission; and I find it no very great task, for the surgeon's arma- 
mentarium contains all that is needed. 

Who could ever forget Professor 0. with the aspirating needle 
before him? A long, thin thing, through which large accumula- 
tions can be evacuated with great facility, through comparatively 
small openings. 

Professor L., the ecrasew, — who will not immediately recognize 
the likeness ? With the ecraseur we can secure a firm hold on things, 
but when we keep on screwing, as Dr. L. keeps on increasing the 
dose of his remedies, the thing drops off. 

Dr. L. 1 will be represented by the single blade of the obstetric 
forceps; there is a great deal of metal in it, and it is highly pol- 
ished ; how complete would it be with the other blade ! 

In the sponge tent we find a perfect fac-simile of Professor E. ; 
you can compress it as you will, and, pushed in the smallest crev- 
ices, in the most obscure recesses, it will make room for itself and 

1 A bachelor. 



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Addresses. 261 

come to life, and finally yon will hardly find a place roomy enough 
for it. 

Professor B. will be represented in the group which I draw for 
you by the mallet and chisel, instruments which, in the hands of 
the sculptor, preserve the type of symmetry in the human body, 
and which will always serve as a reference to Professor B.'s ortho- 
paedic skill ; and, although he is neither a sculptor nor a mason, you 
have recently had evidence how well he can cut out a stone and cut 
for stone. 

Professor C. gives me the least trouble; he is a sort of natural 
negative; all you have to do is to print the picture. I have done 
so, and what do you think I obtained? A saw. The saw is an 
instrument which goes backward and forward, backward and for- 
ward, upward and downward, upward and downward, and if you 
don't watch it closely you won't know where it is, but it gets 
through with its work well and in due time. I don't like to tell 
tales out of school, but if you promise not to tell anyone else I will 
confide a secret to you. In Faculty meetings it is often extremely 
important to have his counsel and his vote, and we often have to 
send out exploring expeditions after him, which sometimes find 
him in the wards of the Hospital, or in the Museum, at times in 
the dispensary, and again back in the kitchen, all this at the same 
meeting. 

Professor A. is a double-edged catlin ; it requires very little push- 
ing to bring it forward, and on whatever side it is used it makes 
way for itself. 

The well-soaked sponge will always remind you of Professor G-. ; 
press where you will, you will always find there is something in it. 

I shall leave an empty space in which you will have to look for 
Professor S.; there is nothing there; as there is nothing in the 
armamentarium to stand in his stead, for there is nobody who can 
teach medical students as much chemistry as he can. 
18 



262 Aabon Friedenwald, M. D. 

Professor E. I shall represent by the trephine, the brush, and 
the lever ; in all his literary work he goes below the surface, but he 
doesn't do it by boring; he brushes away the debris, and with the 
lever brings hidden things to view, so that all can see them. I am 
sorry that I had to retain the brush, which is inseparable from 
the group, for it has much too much hair on it to look anything 
like R. 

There is one in the faculty I have almost forgotten; I should 
be extremely sorry if you ever will. I think he can be best pictured 
by the surgical needle, a small insignificant thing, hardly to be 
noticed among the other more pretentious instruments . . . 
No doubt all of you still remember that when you were not very 
careful in approaching the eye you were very apt to be stuck. 

Accept this picture with my kindest regards; take it with you, 
hang it in your offices, and look at it occasionally; and I feel sure 
when you come back to us in after years, if we are here at all, you 
will find us less altered than the photographs would indicate. 



RESPONSE TO THE TOAST, "THE FINAL EXAMINA- 
TION; EXAMINE ME ON THE PARTICULARS OF 
MY KNOWLEDGE," AT THE ANNUAL BANQUET OF 
THE ALUMNI OF THE COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS 
AND SURGEONS, MARCH 15, 1887. 1 

Gentlemen : 

The toast just announced proposes two very broad subjects for 
what must necessarily be one very short speech, " The final ex- 
amination," and "Examine me on the particulars of my knowl- 
edge." I am sure, gentlemen, that you who have just passed the 
ordeal will agree with me that, even with most judicious economy 
of words, the final examination is a subject so suggestive as fully 
to occupy the time that this occasion would well allow, even if 
treated in a most general way. Therefore the task imposed upon 
me, to add anything that refers to particulars, particularly to the 
particulars of my knowledge, would require of me a skill in verbal 
financiering which I certainly cannot claim to possess. 

The final examination is an epidemic which appears regularly 
once a year, about the same season, lasting about the same time, 
and assailing young men of a certain class. It is always antici- 
pated with an anxiety out of all proportion to its comparatively 
low rate of mortality. The attack to which the unfortunate in- 
dividual is subjected is preceded by a distinct premonitory stage, 
lasting usually a few weeks, marked by insomnia, emaciation, 
anaemia, and impairment of mental vigor. In this condition the 
sufferer usually appeals to his physician, the quiz-master, for re- 
lief. He advises him to partake liberally of mental food, and 

1 At that date oral examinations were still in vogue, the student 
meeting a different instructor each day. 



264 Aaron Fkiedenwald, M. D. 

prescribes for him a bounteous supply of well-prepared text-books, 
to which he adds an endless number of instructions to secure their 
thorough digestion. But, lo, the appetite will not respond. He 
next tempts him with little dainties of well-seasoned compends 
which may be relished for a short time, but generally soon become 
nauseating, and then superinduce ineffectual deglutition. The 
poor patient at this juncture is much dismayed, but his doctor has 
not exhausted his resources; he brings forth the stomach tube, 
thrusts it through his rebellious esophagus, and pours in his con- 
centrated broth until he can pour in no more. Now the patient 
cries out imploringly, " Hold up, for I am sure to burst," but the 
doctor smiles complacently, and replies, " Fear not, for you are well 
crammed." Now the febrile attack is ushered in; it is of the 
quotidian type, repeats itself daily with great regularity, varying 
in its intensity somewhat on different days, having a cold, a hot, 
and a sweating stage. From this time on the doctor sinks into 
oblivion, and a professor steps into the foreground, each day 
another. They treat the patient as if he had swallowed something 
belonging to them which they wanted to get out of him again 
at all hazards. They press him hard on all sides, they pump him 
most unmercifully, and they call the process an examination. 
Except for the legal significance of the term, it might better be 
styled a cross-examination which, with its multiplicity of demur- 
rers and rebuttals, is deserving of the title of an " Inquisition." 
These inquisitors get out of many of their victims all they seek; 
more is the wonder, when we consider how awkwardly they 
go about it. Out of many they obtain but a fair quantity, 
and here it must be said to their credit that they are always wil- 
ling to accept a reasonable compromise. In isolated cases they 
find nothing, even after the most persistent search. This phe- 
nomenon has been variously explained, some claiming there was 
nothing to find, while others believe that the indiscriminate ham- 



Addresses. 265 

mering that was done has sometimes aecidently closed up the bung 
hole. Woe to him who will some day have to answer for the 
many answers that have thus been suppressed ! 

I have not consulted the toast-master as to whom he means in 
the annex to the toast, "Examine me on the particulars of my 
knowledge ; " certainly not the recent graduate, for he would in- 
dignantly reject the honor in the language of Falstaff, " No more 
examinations for me, I have my belly full of them." I take it for 
granted that he must mean the individual members of the faculty 
who have been kept so busy during the session dispensing their 
general knowledge that they could not find time to reveal their 
particular knowledge. 

I will, therefore, take the liberty to ask Professor 0. in behalf 
of the toast-master, for the benefit of the recent graduate, how to 
steer safely between conflicting influences of obstetrics and gyne- 
cology, the former teaching as it does to let the uterus have its 
own way and its own time to get rid of things, and the latter seem- 
ingly holding out at all times the temptation to get out of it all 
one can. 

I would ask Professor L., who has discovered the real kinship of 
the white and red corpuscles, which, according to him, stand to 
each other as progenitor and offspring, 2 whether the recently dis- 
covered placque, which we all must acknowledge is a blood rela- 
tion, is to be regarded as a grandparent or a grandchild. 

I would ask Professor L. to forget for a moment his weakness 
for full and late suppers and to designate what would be a minimum 
of cheap nourishment that would answer the purpose of an ab- 
dominal support, — of course I don't mean an abdomen of the di- 
mensions of his own. It might be useful to the young practitioner 
in his early experience, in enabling him to avoid the unpleasant- 
ness of too frequently recurring fast-days. 

s A pet theory of his. 



266 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

Of Professor B. I would ask, for the benefit of the poor stu- 
dent who is led into the dangerous currents of anatomy, in which 
he cannot find his way, in which he has either stranded, been 
totally shipwrecked, or formed a sort of embolus, whether there is 
no more pleasant way out of the difficulty than to be extricated 
readily and easily, 8 or easily and readily, after first being crushed 
into fragments, however, by a species of lithotrity. 

Professor C. is noted for demanding very prompt answers in 
anything relating to emergencies. No student will fail when he 
asks "What would you do, if . . . ," to reply, before he has 
finished the sentence, " Stop the hemorrhage, sir." I now ask 
him if a man is blown up in the air, whether it is justifiable to 
wait till he comes down, or whether he would suggest something 
to do in the meantime. 

Of Professor A. I would ask, for the benefit of some of my col- 
leagues, the recipe for the soothing syrup which he administers 
to the students in his examinations, which enables them to main- 
tain such perfect composure amid scenes made horrible by insen- 
sibility, hyperesthesia, spasms, convulsions, incoordination, paraly- 
sis, collapse, and coma. 

Of Professor G-., to whom I am sure we are greatly indebted for 
the information regarding many remarkable things and concerning 
men of all times with which he so successfully illustrates his in- 
structions, I would ask, if he has anything remarkable to relate 
about anybody this evening, to restrict himself, — I don't like to 
ask impossibilities, and therefore I won't say to some person pres- 
ent, but, in deference to our national pride, I would ask him not 
to carry us to some foreign clime, for we are beginning to think 
that this is a big country too, at least too large to be entirely 
ignored. 

8 A characteristic mannerism of the professor in question. 



Addresses. 267 

I do not want to slight Professor S., but I have an aversion to a 
chemical cauldron; it always savors of sulphuretted hydrogen, 
which, as it is, we have to succumb to frequently enough from 
other sources ; but if he has any secrets to communicate I willingly 
extend to him carte blanche. 

My last question is to Professor E. He has a good head on him ; 
it is as replete within as it is barren without. I cannot look upon 
its summit without being reminded of the goal of the Arctic ex- 
plorer, the open sea at the North pole. I would ask him why he 
don't get married. You may be surprised that I did not ask him 
a question of a more scientific character; my reason is that there 
is no question so simple but that he can give it scientific significance. 

In conclusion, gentlemen of the graduating class, permit me to 
assure you of my good wishes, and to express the hope that in those 
self-examinations to which you will all have to subject yourselves, 
you will be able to answer unhesitatingly, " I have led a pure life 
and I have remained an honest man/' and that a diploma bearing 
these words will secure the proper endorsement after the grand 
final examination which will take place in a better world. 



EESPONSE TO THE TOAST OP " THE SPECIALIST " AT 
THE ANNUAL BANQUET OP THE ALUMNI OF THE 
COLLEGE OP PHYSICIANS AND SUEGEONS, MAECH 
15, 1888. 

The specialist, although he has settled among us for some time, 
is still looked upon as a newcomer ; and the talk about him, as to 
what he is and what he pretends to be, still continues. He cer- 
tainly has added a new army corps to our professional forces. 
How came he so rapidly from the rear to the van? Has he mer- 
ited the advancement which he has attained ? Has he fulfilled the 
promises with which he has been so lavish? These questions are 
all answered very satisfactorily if the answer is left to himself. 
I should not always like to answer for him. He considers him- 
self a species of a higher development, destined to survive, and 
looks pityingly upon the general practitioner as a subject for the 
study of the paleontologist of the future. He is a creature of one 
specialty but many peculiarities, of which I would mention the 
peculiarity of his mental organization. 

In the storehouse of his knowledge there is but one pigeon-hole 
occupied. In some instances this has always been so, the house 
simply being too large for the owner from the beginning; in other 
cases the empty apartments had at one time been occupied, but the 
tenants were evicted because they did not pay any rent. He has 
proved himself a very prolific being, however, and has brought up 
a remarkably large family. This is specially remarkable when we 
take into consideration the short time that he has been in the 
business, and when we allow for those of his offspring that were 
still-born, and for the miscarriages that happened in his family. 



Addresses. ■ 269 

The ophthalmologist is his first-born and he is proud of his 
birthright, although he has exhibited a great fondness for his mess 
of pottage too. If there is anything bad to say about him I shall 
not do it, for he deserves much sympathy for the struggles that 
he had to go through in the beginning. He had at first to lead a 
romantic life, doing his work by the wayside as best he could, 
nowhere finding a sufficiently firm footing to place himself perma- 
nently. The disadvantage under which he labored was that he 
had no scope, but a better day at last dawned for him and an 
angel in the form of Helmholtz, the great German physiologist and 
physicist, appeared to him and placed one in his hand. Since then 
he has been enabled to reveal a whole new world, and now every- 
body is willing to do him homage. 

The next one added to the family was the laryngologist. He was 
a lucky fellow from the start. He was, so to say, born holding a 
silver spoon in somebody else's mouth. He did not have to grope 
his way long in the dark; he received inspiration from his elder 
brother to discover that light which permitted him to explore re- 
gions which had never been beheld before. All honor is due him, 
for he has given speech to the dumb, and breath to expiring life. 

The gynecologist was born all at once; there were no throes of 
labor to go through with, and, to show consistency, he did not even 
wait for the christening, but made a name for himself. He is 
entitled to our full respect, for, besides all the good that he has 
done for suffering woman, and all the good that he has done for 
himself — and that has not always been little — he has the credit for 
opening the way for the possibilities of the abdominal surgery of 
our day. It is to be regretted that there are some specimens of 
this species who disgrace the family name. They are to be likened 
to the bacteria which are known by the stains which they bear. 
Let us hope that they are not as numerous as is sometimes whis- 
pered. 



270 Aaeon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

The neurologist next deserves conspicuous honor. What a task 
he has undertaken ! What an intricate instrument has he not at- 
tempted to master, a harp with a thousand strings! How learn- 
edly he speaks, when we ask what the disease is, and where the 
disease is; and how silent he is, unfortunately, when we ask where 
the remedy is! He is entitled to lasting gratitude, however, for, 
besides the great discoveries which are the guides for himself, he 
has furnished a map for cerebral surgery, the acquisition of which 
domain ranks deservedly as one of the greatest achievements of our 
time. Let us hope that he may soon receive a new revelation for 
the improvement of his therapeutics, so that he will either be en- 
abled to throw aside altogether those electrical playthings with which 
he has been so much employed or be permitted to make more prac- 
tical use of them. In the meantime we owe him many thanks, for 
he has been a splendid summer and winter resort to send our hys- 
terical women to when we had to rid ourselves of them for a while. 

And now a word in regard to the genito-urinary surgeon. I do 
not know what to admire most in him, the skill with which he 
gets things out of the bladder, or the readiness with which he 
thrusts things into the bladder. After witnessing him passing a 
sound of the size of a crow-bar through the urethra, I am now 
prepared to see him extract a stone through the same channel by 
means of the obstetric forceps. He has had a hard lot assigned to 
him, that of a "hewer of stone" and a "drawer of water." Let 
us therefore forgive him for the innocent blood he has often shed 
in cutting strictures that never existed. 

I shall not apologize to the rectal surgeon for having deferred 
my respects to him to this period of my remarks; for he is rather 
used to being brought in at the end of things. He is the 
youngest in the family and, under the circumstances, bright, cheer- 
ful, and happy. He has not been without his mishaps. He was 
born a mistake. He had made up his mind to be born a gynecolo- 



Addresses. 271 

gist, but the field was occupied; and in looking around for an 
opening he found one in the immediate neighborhood. And now 
let me take my leave of this happy family. 

Before doing this, however, permit me to say to the young gradu- 
ate here present who may desire to become a specialist, to be a 
physician first, and to remain a physician throughout his career 
in addition to being a specialist, in clinging to the mission which 
is the basis of our profession. Gather new knowledge wherever 
you can, but never abandon our ancient creed. Avoid the company 
of those specialists who avow a professional agnosticism, and preach 
an ethical culture of their own. 



RESPONSE TO THE TOAST OF « THE CAP AND GOWN " 
AT THE ANNUAL BANQUET OF THE ALUMNI OF 
THE COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS, 
1891. 

Gentlemen : 

It is a bad thing for a man to be too good natured. I don't 
claim to be the first one to have made this discover}', but I never 
realized so thoroughly the truth of this aphorism till I had given 
my assent to respond to the toast you have just heard. " The Cap 
and Gown ! " " What in the world can a man say on such a 
subject that is sensible?" is the question that confronts me and 
fills me with horror; and I should be reasonably consoled could I 
assure myself that I might say something that was decently non- 
sensical. The only cheering thought that I can find is that, on 
an occasion like this, one is not expected to be in a frame of mind 
in which he can be held strictly accountable for what he says. To 
obtain a little inspiration I presented myself before a mirror after 
having crawled into the inside of the attire in question- My 
fears were instantly confirmed ; there was not much in it. 

I do not know who introduced the fashion originally; I am 
inclined to think that it was the product of a gradual evolution. 
Probably the Cap and the Gown had quite different origins. It 
is quite likely that, when bald heads were not quite as fash- 
ionable as now, some old college professor who decided to protect 
and perhaps conceal the inconvenient nakedness on the summit of 
his anatomy, originated the natural skull cap, and imposed the 
style upon a long line of successors; finally one arose who tried 
to do something remarkable by standing before the world in an 
attitude a little different from that in which college professors 




AARON FRIEDENWALD 

1891 



E TO THE TOAST OF " THE CAP AND 
THE ANNUAL BANQUET OF TH 
SICIANS AN] 



vas not muc! 
od the fashion am 

to think that it wa. duct of a gradi; 

ip and the Gown had qu It 

likely \en bald heads were not qu 

is now, som. lege professor who d< 

perhaps "he inconvenient nakedness on the summi 

om 5- ajAwnaoBifn hohaa 

upon a ^ 

omething remarkable by standing 

rent from that 



Addresses. 273 

were wont to appear, and he thought he could make a great sen- 
sation by standing on his head, to facilitate which he resorted to 
the patent mortar-board attachment. 

The next great discovery . . . was made, no doubt, when 
some other college professor found that the cap could be worn 
without standing on one's head. Things have been going on pretty 
well since that time, except on certain occasions when it became 
exceedingly difficult to decide whether a professor was standing 
on his head or on his feet. So much for the probable early his- 
tory of the cap. 

But whence came the gown ? There is not the slightest difficulty 
in explaining that. It is fair to infer that in ancient times 
there were just as absent-minded professors as there are to-day, 
and it was a most natural accident that one of them should have 
seized upon a Mother Hubbard hung upon a professor's hook and 
put it on instead of an overcoat. The gracefulness of the combina- 
tion of the Cap and the Gown was at once recognized. The Cap 
and Gown became from that time on in many places essential to the 
dignity of every professor and of every young doctor, and this 
ancient habiliment has finally been rehabilitated here. It is a new 
thing with us, but it won't take long for us to get used to it, and 
we shall soon ask ourselves how we got on so long without it. But 
we must guard against accident, and therefore I would warn our 
worthy Dean, Professor 0., not to stand himself in some corner 
for a little rest; for, as it is quite natural that he should be very 
tired when he wears the uniform, he might fall asleep, and some 
fellow who had not seen such a thing before might come along, and, 
if it rained outside, might take him for an umbrella, and seize him 
by what he would regard as the handle and try to hoist him. I 
hope my friend 0. will not take offense at being compared to an 
umbrella, for I really intend to pay him a well deserved compli- 
ment. The comparison is not suggested by the fact that he is of 



274 Aaron Fkiedenwald, M. D. 

tall and slender form and can be made to spread himself when it 
becomes necessary, but by the fact that lie has thrown every other 
dean that I have ever known completely into the shade. 

I was much pleased to see how becoming the Cap and Gown 
were to my esteemed friend, Professor L. ; l it gave him (as I 
thought) quite. a saintly appearance, and I would advise him to 
wear it before the class when next he will relate his annual story 
of the famous young lady who passed an iceberg, and I am sure the 
story will be regarded as a miracle and not as a joke. If he will 
take my advice I will promise him to be present on the occasion. 
The dress suits him admirably; it does not conceal a good point 
about him, not even his embonpoint; in fact it just suits his gen- 
eral get-up, for I know of no one who is so quick about getting 
out of some things. 

The Cap and Gown are no less becoming to Professor B. ; they 
give him a veritably high-priestly appearance; I do not want to 
underrate his merits as to surgical knowledge and surgical skill, 
but I really believe he has missed his calling; I am led to believe 
this by the deep impression which he makes upon the class by 
his annual sermon at the close of his lectures, and by the sacerdotal 
blessing which he extends on that occasion. I felt deeply affected 
myself when I met the weeping multitude coming down stairs, 
and had to console the poor fellows and tell them not to take the 
parting so hard. 

The Cap and Gown were first proposed in our faculty by Professor 
E. Gentlemen, hand this down to posterity, it is a recognition 
which is eminently due him. He fought hard and against odds, 
but he finally triumphed. I do not know whether the idea was 
suggested to him by any of his sanitary studies; he never told 
us anything about that. He suggested any number of wherefores, 
but it was the wherewith which was the formidable objection he had 

1 Professor of the Principles and Practice of Medicine. 



Addresses. 275 

to overcome. E. looks well in almost anything. He is the last 
man in the world whom I would begrudge the gown, but I must 
confess it was not a little disappointment to me this morning when 
the top of his head was completely concealed from view. That 
head has been an inspiration to me on many an occasion- You 
gentlemen may not see anything on the top of that head, but I 
have always been so fortunate as to find something there to hold 
on to. It has served me to good purpose in affording a place for 
copious imaginary memoranda. 

Having begun to divulge secrets, I might as well leave the 
whole cat out of the bag; I mean no disrespect, for I shall now 
have to say a word about Professor P. You all know that he 
was manufactured at the University of Pennsylvania; and you 
will agree with me that the job was well done. We all had a 
very high opinion of the University of Pennsylvania, even before 
the notable sample of its products just mentioned came among 
us, and we were quite willing to follow the example of the University 
of Pennsylvania in any way by which the methods of our college 
might be improved. We felt that Professor P. had some revelation 
to make; but, although we extended every possible encouragement 
to him to unbosom himself, he remained taciturn for quite a while. 
We inquired about the laboratories, about the lectures, about the 
building, about the three years' course, about preliminary require- 
ments; and all these inquiries were met by a silent but negative 
shake of his ponderous head. But there came an occasion at last 
when he seemed prepared for a grand announcement ; we assembled 
around him, he drew himself up in a most earnest attitude, and 
breathed the words : "Cap and Grown ! " 



RESPONSE TO A TOAST AT THE ANNUAL BANQUET OF 
THE ALUMNI OF THE COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS 
AND SURGEONS, APRIL 19, 1893. 

Me. Toastmaster: 

So you want to have a snap-shot at me this time! Well, help 
yourself, but be prepared for the worst. On this occasion, where 
everything is so exceedingly pleasant and such good cheer prevails, 
where so many good fellows who were never expected to be equal 
to the task have made such very fine speeches, and where keen wit 
has spouted forth from what was looked upon as barren rock for 
such phenomena, the rock not being smitten by the staff, but wit 
issuing forth as a living stream at your command; when sparkling 
humor has spent its brightest pearls with a lavish hand, and 
deepest sentiment has floated gracefully on the current of thought, 
and new jokes have been born without disaster to either mother 
or child, and have been held up to us in newest editions, and 
stories have been told in such a charming style that, though much 
of them was old, there was more of them that was new, and when 
imagination has soared in such celestial flights from minds whose 
reasoning has been wont to dwell in frigid zones, and when poetry 
has seized the reins of speech and lyric strains have flowed from 
lips that but yesterday spoke of dry bones and bleeding piles, 
club feet and pylosalpinx, gangrene and gallstones, melancholia 
and castor oil, — on such an occasion, Mr. Toastmaster, I am 
willing to be resigned to my fate. 

Mr. Toastmaster, we owe you a great debt of gratitude for 
the very rich feast you have prepared for us. What the Carrollton 
has offered has been as good as its well-deserved reputation 



Addresses. 277 

has justified us in expecting, but, in comparison with the intellectual 
menu that you have spread before us, it is as a barbecue to Del- 
monico's, and I feel greatly inclined to pour my blessings, in behalf 
of this good company, upon your reverend head, but when I gaze 
upon that slippery convexity, as I have a great dread for accidents, 
I am afraid to run the risk of pouring anything on it. I well 
remember the time when it looked like an ordinary head, and 
when first that noble forehead began swiftly to claim its just 
dimensions ; but soon that Eubicon, the coronal suture, was passed, 
and the devastation has gradually marched onward in the sagittal 
line, now and then, making a malicious centrifugal sweep until 
nothing has been left to sweep away, and the occipital protuberance 
stands out in bold relief as the distant milestone that has been 
left behind. But after all there has been no great damage done; 
indeed, it would have been a pity to have such a head concealed by 
even the most beautiful growth. We can now see what a fitting 
superstructure it is to all that it surmounts. It reminds one 
of a magnificent dome of some grand cathedral. 

But there is other architectural material here that we must 
not overlook. There is 0., standing among us as the tower- 
ing spire that is eagerly looked for in the distance, that has 
stood the test of time, and defies the storms that have beat against 
it; that stands now where it was placed in the beginning; that casts 
no shadows, but reflects sunshine on all sides and leans toward 
none. He is a jolly good fellow ; he is a man equal to any task, but 
a hero in emergencies; in the perplexities which beset him at this 
season he often mislays his papers, but never loses his temper. 

I like to please all parties, and there may be those who would 
like to see two domes upon the same structure. My friend 
L. would be available in such an emergency, but then he would 
have to be placed horizontally, belly upward, and I am too good a 
friend to suffer that he should be on his back. Besides he serves 
19 



278 Aakon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

a much more useful purpose; as long as he can stand safely and 
happily alone, he is the strong fortress which firmly props up all 
the rest. 

The building would not be complete without our friend B. 
He is a man of deep emotions. How touching are his words when 
he bids you farewell, how deeply he sighs for the griefs that may 
threaten you! How anxious he is that all may go well with 
you! The rest of us may feel as deeply as he, but we cannot 
show it nearly so well. We could not afford to do without him on 
that account. He is our canaliculus [tear-duct], but I am not 
speaking anatomically, but architecturally; let us therefore place 
him as the rainspout through which we shall pour all our tears. 

Next there is Professor S., whose perennial smile would lead 
me to doubt that there is any acid in nature, certainly in his 
nature. He shall be represented as the open door which speaks 
a friendly welcome to all, that does not creak upon its hinges, 
and, if it be a sliding door, it certainly must be one that never 
flies off the track. 

And now we'll want a weather-cock; C. is at hand to fill the 
bill, not that he turns with the wind, but because he always looks 
in the right direction. He never looks behind when there's danger 
in front, nor does he look in front when the enemy is in the rear. 
I might have termed him the weather-vane, but I did not want 
to suggest the query whether he was vain or not, or whether there 
was anything in his looks that entitled him to be vain. He was 
not made for show, but for service; and, like many other home- 
made things, will be sure to wear well. 

And there is Professor P.; he is made up of the straightest 
timber, and will do well for the balustrade. It is a good thing 
to hold on to; it leads the way to safety and tells when you go 
the wrong way- Not one of those balustrades that can be straddled, 



Addebsses. 279 

or sat upon, or jumped over; I say this in friendly warning to 
those not fully initiated. 

We have been on the roof ; now let's go to the cellar and inspect 
the catacombs, the repository of the trophies of death. Here is 
the great art gallery in which disease has hung its paintings, 
and deformity has placed its statues. You will feel a little un- 
comfortable here; the air is damp and chilly. But look again; 
by some legerdemain the building has been reversed and you 
are suddenly in the top story, and the friendly countenance of my 
friend K. greets you. You know he don't mind having things 
upside down occasionally. No wonder that he is always so serious ; 
he deals only with the dead. But perhaps he is not so serious 
after all; you know he is a trifle selfish, so he secures a silent 
audience that he may have all the fun to himself. 

Last, but not least, we turn to the last addition of the structure, 
Professor N. ; 1 he will do well for the belfry, from which the tale 
is "told" of many a strong pull. 

And now, gentlemen of the graduating class, one word to you 
in conclusion. I want to present you each with a souvenir, of 
course in miniature, representing a dome, a spire, a fortress, a 
rainspout, a weather-cock, a balustrade, a catacomb, and a belfry; 
when you look upon them, remember kindly those whom I have 
made them represent on this occasion, as kindly as I am sure they 
will always remember you. 

1 Recently elected Professor of Obstetrics. 



EESPONSE TO THE TOAST OP "THE COLLEGE" AT 
THE ANNUAL BANQUET OP THE ALUMNI OP THE 
COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS AND SUEGEONS, APEIL 
15, 1897. 

Gentlemen : 

I have a friend, whom I shall speak of on this occasion as 
" the judge," who is quite a scholar, and whose judgment is highly 
valued. He was requested to hear the inaugural sermon of a 
new preacher who had been selected by a congregation after a 
number of trial sermons by less fortunate aspirants. The judge 
came. The congregation was elated, but the judge's countenance 
maintained a stoical expression. After the services the dignitaries 
approached him for his verdict, when he said, " You have selected 
the wrong man." "Whom should we have chosen?" said they 
in their consternation. " Any other man," was his prompt reply. 
This would have been my answer to the committee, but the mes- 
sage reached me at the eleventh hour, and the committee was 
sly enough to be nowhere sufficiently near for my answer to reach 
them, and so I am here to-night to do the bidding of the committee, 
unwillingly, as best I can. 

I am sure that you have looked forward to Dr. 0. as that 
" any other man " to respond to the toast, and I must do the com- 
mittee the justice, notwithstanding all the just grudge I bear them, 
to state that they knew who would be the man, the proper man, for 
the occasion. But Dr. 0. has a head entirely his own, and he 
just will or will not as pleases him. He can slip through readily 
where others are caught, and so he has extricated himself from, 
and precipitated me into a difficulty. If every man were blessed 
as he, when in a tight place, you would never have been admonished 



Addeesses. 281 

that it is as impossible for a man to pass through the eye of a 
needle as it is for a camel to enter the kingdom of heaven. 

I know full well that it is quite unusual and equally unexpected 
on occasions of this kind to pay the slightest regard to the subject 
upon which one is called to speak. But I do want to say a word 
or two about the college, and therefore, I ask your pardon for what 
ordinarily would be accounted a digression. The college has long 
since reached vigorous adult life. Many years have passed since 
0. put on its last diaper. He was a faithful nurse, as many 
a sleepless night attested. He used to place it on the scale 
every day or two to see how it was getting along. But the scale 
had soon to be abandoned. The swaddling clothes were thrown 
aside long before the usual time. Every thing soon got too small 
for it, and at very short intervals it demanded more room for 
itself. It did not begin its movements by crawling, but took a 
bold step from the beginning. That first step was a remarkable 
one, for before it rose the Maternite, as if by enchantment; a new 
departure in which it had no guide, but in which it has been a 
leader to its elders. Its next great triumph was the acquisition 
at a single stroke of all that the Washington University had come 
into possession of in half a century. Before many more years 
had passed the City Spring lot, which had so long been conspicuous 
for its barrenness, was made fruitful, and the new City Hospital 
built upon it, and then the new well-equipped college building 
superseded what had been both college and hospital. This does 
not include all, but my story would prove too long. More significant 
than all these acquisitions, however, is the recognition of the 
influence it has wielded in bringing about the improved methods 
and advanced standards of modern medical education. 

The college has now reached a stage in its development which 
will enable it to celebrate achievements in the future even 
more brilliant than in the past. It was no small satisfaction to 



282 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

the older members of the faculty in years gone by when we were 
made more fully conscious of the meritorious career of the college 
by that notable silence which formed the sepulchre of the sneers 
and slander which had assailed it in its early youth. Let us hope 
that when the time comes when those who are young in the faculty 
now shall speak as I do to-night, to sons of fathers who have 
been my pupils, that they will be able to exult in being connected 
with a college which will be true to its past, an honor to them- 
selves, and a pride to the profession. 



KESPONSE TO THE TOAST OF " MUSIC " AT A BANQUET 
OF THE BALTIMOEE MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, 
1873 (?). 

Mr. President : 

We have all been taught that honest confession is good for the 
soul; and, not wishing to deprive that important element of my 
organism of the salutary influences described by this maxim, I 
confess here without the slightest hesitation that I do not know 
anything at all about music, notwithstanding which, however, I 
am not deterred from responding to the toast just announced, 
and I feel encouraged to hope that I may acquit myself not dis- 
creditably, for it is not of rare occurrence that physicians speak 
best on subjects which they do not understand. 

Music has been extolled in poetry and prose from time im- 
memorial for the benefits which it bestows upon mankind. Every 
one says that it refines our tastes, elevates our thoughts, inspires 
us with the beautiful and sublime, in a word, that it is the lan- 
guage of the soul. I have no special reason to find fault with 
this generally received opinion, and, if I had, I would not, for 
I have a superstition that it is not safe on the commencement of 
the new year to steer against the current of public opinion. But 
there are other considerations which should induce me to pay 
homage willingly at the shrine of music. Who is there so callous 
that has not felt its wondrous charms? On joyous occasions it 
gladdens the heart, and makes pleasure pure; in sorrow it breathes 
soothing consolation. From our earliest infancy we require its 
happy influences; and you, as medical men, can bear testimony 
that the maternal lullaby is more potent than the syrup of the 



284 Aaeon Friedenwald, M. D. 

most venerated Mrs. Winslow. I remember but one occasion in 
my life wben music proved a source of annoyance to me. It was 
on tbe occasion of a professional visit of an unimportant character, 
after which I intended to hurry to the relief of a suffering 
patient. The fond mother insisted that I should have an oppor- 
tunity to admire the wonderful talent of her promising offspring. 
I protested a professional engagement, she insisted on the wonderful 
talent, and I was compelled to yield. I would not confess this 
much to any one else, but you, as physicians, realize how important 
it is for a physician to be polite under all circumstances. A piece 
was played on the piano, but the groans of my poor patient sounded 
in my ears and I could not hear the music. To conceal my agita- 
tion I fixed my eye intently upon the instrument and in my dis- 
traction it took the form of an animal. ... I placed it in the 
family of quadrupeds. It had a large body, a very large mouth 
which it opened by raising its upper jaw and displayed two rows 
of teeth, the upper one showing the destructive effect of time, the 
lower one in a perfect state of preservation. It had four legs and 
a long trunk which, when tread upon, caused the animal to make a 
great deal of noise. I was not astonished at this. 

Having alluded to a musical instrument, I take occasion to 
defend the wind instruments from the charge of producing inguinal 
hernia, brought against them by our profession. I have reason to 
know that physicians are singularly exempt from this infirmity, 
and I know a very large number of them blow their trumpets very 
persistently. 

But I am to speak on music, not on musical instruments. Music 
speaks best for itself. . . . 



BEPLY TO THE TOAST OP "THE BABIES" AT THE 
ANNUAL BANQUET OF THE BALTIMOEE MEDICAL 
AND SUEGICAL SOCIETY, JANUAKY 28, 1886. 

Gentlemen : 

I don't like to find fault with the committee that selected me 
to respond to the toast of "The Babies," but it seems to me the 
cause would be served better if a much younger man would have 
had this duty assigned to him. I say this on the principle that 
governed that big boy who could not tell how old he was when 
he was asked, and, after he was put to shame by a very little fellow 
who replied promptly, " I am three years old," when the same 
question was propounded to him, extricated himself from the 
difficulty by saying, " Oh, it is no wonder that kid should remember 
his age ; it hasn't been so long since he was born ! " Now, there 
are a number in this company whose recollections of babyhood 
should still be very vivid, for it hasn't been so very long since they 
were babies. I will, however, not enter any further plea in regard 
to the comparative disadvantage at which I find myself, because 
after all everybody ought to know something about babies, for we 
were all babies once. Once, did I say? Well, I desire to qualify 
this statement slightly, for some of us have been babies occasionally 
since we were born, and not a few have remained babies ever since. 
I shall not permit my remarks, however, to take this wide range, 
but shall confine myself to babies in infancy. I feel assured of 
your good wishes that this " confinement " shall be safe and speedy 
and result in no harm to either the baby or myself. I assume 
the duty imposed upon me very cheerfully, the more so because 
I think it is high time that a kind word should be spoken for the 
babies by one who has always been their friend. 



286 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

There can be no kind of doubt that babies have lost much of 
their ancient popularity. Mothers and fathers cannot be found now- 
a-days who would feel . . . happy in the idea of being the parents 
of a dozen children; I say in the idea, for the reality so seldom 
presents itself that it hardly deserves to be taken into account. It 
seems only through special favor, or perhaps through an unavoid- 
able accident, that a baby is permitted to be born at all. "Why 
is this thus?" I exclaim, in the language of Artemus Ward. 
Well, it is replied, they are too much trouble anyhow; they keep 
us awake at night; they require too often the expensive luxury of 
an extra wet nurse ; they bring too much measles, whooping cough, 
scarlet fever, and diphtheria into the family; during the day they 
constantly keep us busy in keeping them out of mischief, and at 
night they interrupt the dreams of both parents and grandparents 
with frightful stories of colic and earache. In the winter they 
arouse us from our slumber with the shrill bugle notes of the 
croup; and go and ask the poor washerwoman what the summer 
complaint brings. But we must not listen to these charges any 
longer; enough is enough, and in this instance far too much. 
I will therefore plead on this occasion for the life of the baby. I 
am indebted for this forcible expression to a very distinguished 
townsman, 1 who, in the public entertainments which he gave during 
the past winter, proved himself a much greater humorist than the 
very great one whom I quoted a few moments since. Yes, I will 
plead for the life of the baby, and, although I lack the eloquence 
of the gentlemen from whom I borrow the language, I have this 
advantage, that I am pleading for the life of a respectable baby, 
who knows who its parents are, and is surrounded by decent rela- 
tions. It may make no difference to that gentleman whether any 
babies are born or not for the next fifty years, yet the baby for 

1 Bernard Carter, author of a well-known " Plea for the Life of the 
Democratic Party." 



Addresses. 287 

whose life he plead so feelingly can always show up a very large 
family connection without any natural additions. But we, gentle- 
men, we recognize in our babies the men and women of the future, 
and we have not yet learned the art of perpetuating society without 
them. And I plead first for the life of the baby before it is born, 
for after it once manages to be born it is generally able to dictate 
terms and to become master of the situation. I protest against the 
many drawbacks by which it is hampered in gaining citizenship 
in this great country, and I denounce the assassination by which 
it is so often confronted. Only give the baby a chance, I would 
plead. Let it only be born, and then it will plead most successfully 
for itself. 

What a blessing it is to the family! When it is once born, I 
mean. How gloomy is the home without it! What an Egyptian 
darkness would prevail, even with Edison's incandescent lamp, with- 
out its cheering light. What is there so brilliant as its bright 
little eyes, what is there so charming as its beautiful features, what 
is there so lovely as its cherub-like form; what a pity it is that 
its loveliness does not last a little longer ! I have lived long enough 
to verify the experience of our grandmothers, that the most beau- 
tiful baby is often ashamed to sit for its picture when it has 
reached manhood or womanhood. I don't like to be personal, but 
in looking around me I notice a number in this company who 
from present appearances must have been very beautiful babies 
indeed. We should indeed be grateful for the great happiness which 
the baby bestows, and should willingly forgive all of its little naugh- 
tinesses, for it must be confessed that it is not always fairly treated ; 
and we should not think hard of it when it tries once in a while to 
avenge itself. . . . Why should it be punished for a little dis- 
respect to its parents, when it soon finds out that a great part of 
its business in this world is to give evidence of and bear responsi- 
bility for their iniquities, and finds out further that it is so big 



288 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

a job that it is forced to delegate a part of the work to its suc- 
cessors in the third and fourth generation. Why should it not 
break a costly mantle-piece ornament once in a while, as a satisfac- 
tion for the injustice done by the mother whose extravagance has 
brought her husband into insolvency, and who answers his re- 
proaches by accusing him of having too many children. 

Talk as you will about them, I shall always be their friend. They 
are the only innocent constituent of society; I love them for their 
innocence, I admire them for their loveliness. Charge them with 
what you may, I shall ever be ready to plead their cause, and to 
prove that they are innocent; at least as innocent as I am of having 
said anything to-night that is going to do them any good. 



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KESPONSE TO THE TOAST, "JOLLITY, THE KING 
OF MEDICINES," AT THE ANNUAL MEETING OP 
THE LIBEKAL CLUB, JANUAKY 1, 1889. 

Gentlemen : 

In your calling upon me to praise jollity, the king of medicines, 
I not only feel complimented myself, but accept it as a high tribute 
to the honorable profession of which I am an humble member, 
that you so fully recognize that medical men, while loyal to their 
pharmacopoeia, are not its vassals, and that they neither send all 
their prescriptions to the apothecary nor expect always to be paid 
for all the good advice which they give. Yes, jollity is the king 
of medicines, and it is further to be said in its favor that, unlike 
a great many other good medicines, we need not wait till we are 
ill to partake of its benefits. Of one thing I feel sure, that not 
one of you here present will dispute with me when I say that it 
should never be taken in homeopathic doses. It should not only 
be exhibited in liberal quantities, but frequently repeated, so that 
its exhilarating influence does not wear off during long intervals 
between its administration. It should never be given in cold water, 
for this chills the soul of it; but with sparkling wine it is apt 
to maintain happy companionship. It is a sure cure for many 
ills ; it can be resorted to before and after and during meals. It 
is a stimulant of the highest order, sweeping away the cobwebs 
from a torpid brain, and opening up all the avenues for unob- 
structed procession of the better emotions. It gives force to good 
humor, tone to merriment, and motion to happy thoughts. It 
restores the weary and resuscitates many whom hard work has ex- 
hausted. It is also a good purgative, for it effectually removes 



290 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

from the system that heavy, indigestible, unassimilible matter that 
lies so heavy upon our emotions and so often gives rise to unpleas- 
ant eructations at inopportune times. It frees us from all this, and 
always without the least griping. It is a charming antacid, and 
it is a blessing to the stomach when one's humor has turned sour 
in it; there is no use for soda nor ammonia nor potassa where it 
holds sway. 

It is not a hypnotic; it affords rest without sleep; it rouses the 
lethargic; it awakes the dreamer; it has never been accused of 
inducing snoring, and often achieves its greatest triumphs when 
it does not go to bed before morning. It is not a narcotic, for it 
never stupifies — be it said to its credit that stupidity has no such 
worthy origin. It acts occasionally as an emetic, but only in 
those with whom it does not agree, with the fellow who can't laugh 
without pain, nor smile without groaning. There are none such 
here, and in this regard it need not further be considered. 

To sum up its praise in a few words, we must have recourse to 
the great master who says, " Frame your minds to mirth and 
merriment, which bars a thousand harms and lengthens life." 

But Shakespeare was a general practitioner and he lived before 
the days of specialties; and it may be allowed me to indicate its 
use in special cases. 

I would prescribe it liberally to that liberal member of this Lib- 
eral Club, D. B., as a stimulant, for so arduous a worker in so 
many fields as he is will need a stimulant occasionally. Look at his 
work, championing the cause of Henry George, studying the Bible 
through and through to find what is not in it, unravelling the 
mysteries of spiritualism, drafting election laws, remodeling the 
electoral college, preaching Democracy, and going way off to collect 
ideas on the tariff question — I say going way off, for to me as a 
Republican they seem far-fetched. But this is not all. The city 
was too small for his active spirit. He went off to the country, 



Addresses. 291 

and what he did there is contained in the history of the Belt 
Annexation, and in the remarkable activity of the dairy business. 
Now, this is fatiguing work, and jollity is the stimulant he needs ; 
let us enjoy it with him; may it bar from him a thousand harms 
and lengthen his days, although it may occasionally shorten his 
nights. 

For Professor F. I should prescribe jollity for constant use, 
with an extra dose on election night as a purgative, to remove from 
his system those irritating, curdled political speculations which 
made him so gloomy on that occasion, and caused the figures that 
he saw to assume such fantastic shapes. Everything looked " very 
bad, very bad, very bad," but I was jolly, and everything 
looked very, very, very good. But he is jolly now and may he ever 
remain so, and may mirth and merriment bar from him a thousand 
harms and lengthen, and broaden, and deepen, and widen, and 
heighten his days, so that he shall not fall short in any of their 
dimensions. 

To our friend L. L. I would give it as an alterative, for he 
sadly needs an alterative now. In the pharmacopoeia mercury 
stands prominent as an alterative, but he has taken to it unad- 
visedly, 1 and what an unfortunate alteration has it not made ! Oh, 
how he has wandered off from the camp, but not so far that he 
cannot come back; and in coming back he will leave the gloomy 
" soreheads," and return to the jolly multitude. May mirth and 
merriment bar the chagrin of a thousand ill-appreciated editorials 
and lengthen his life to his full satisfaction for adequate repent- 
ance. 

To our friend C. I would dispense jollity at all times, but a 
double dose when his humor turns a little acid, as it is apt to do 
when testimony proves treacherous, witnesses become unreliable, 

1 Mr. L. had recently connected himself with a newspaper called the 
" Mercury." 



292 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

judges too stupid to grant his demurrers or acknowledge his pre- 
cedents ; a little extra jollity in these cases would relieve the heart- 
burn and afford greater relief than coming to the Liberal Club 
and venting his spleen on us by delivering a learned dissertation 
on the evils of education. May he ever be the jolliest of the jolly, 
and mirth and merriment shield him from a thousand ills and 
lengthen his days; may he never lose his temper, and always 
win his cases. 

To our friend S. I would prescribe jollity, particularly in bad 
weather, when he has plenty of time to partake of it, as the simple 
absence of customers is no joke in itself; but I would not limit 
him to its use only then, but he should take it whenever he feels 
like it, and especially when he doesn't feel like it, so that he can 
laugh and grow fat. May mirth and merriment be as plentiful 
with him as pegs and shoe strings, and may they bar him from 
a thousand ills and lengthen his days in busy search and multiply 
his years so that he may reach an honored and ripe old age. 

There are several members present whose most notable ill is the 
bald head. I'll have to prescribe jollity for them on general 
principles, for, although ready at any time to say a good deal in 
its favor, I cannot claim that it is a hair restorer. May mirth 
and merriment be their lot, and lots of it, and may its invigorating 
influence not only bar from them a thousand ills, but gain for 
them a year for every hair they have lost. 

To S. D., our young friend, I would prescribe jollity to fulfil the 
purpose of absorbent cotton to dry up his tears while sighing for 
the " Crestfallen Kosebud " and the " Broken-hearted Violinist," ' 
but I would give another dose as an invigorating cordial to fill 
him with bolder thoughts, so that when his muse calls again he 
will be found prepared to sing a new song, a song to the Chief 
Musician, a song of the chivalric exploits of Cupid's heroes. May 

1 Titles of his literary productions. 



Addresses. 293 

he ever be plentifully supplied 'with mirth and merriment to bar 
him from a thousand ills and may his life be lengthened, so that 
he may witness his grandson becoming a grandfather, and, when 
finally he will have to " hang up his fiddle and his bow," he may 
go where all the good lawyers go. I hope he will meet our friend 
C. there. 

Jollity is a great panacea; it will be found abundantly if only 
looked for in the right place. It is very cheap, but we all prefer 
not to enjoy it without " Preiss." May he never suffer a scarcity 
of mirth and merriment, which will bar him from a thousand 
harms and lengthen his life. May his life be as vigorous in old age 
as his beard has been in young life. 

Now you have, gentlemen, a medical opinion describing the 
beneficient qualities of jollity; partake of it when you can, while 
you can, if you can. Always have it at home; take some of it 
with you on your way; look for it when abroad. Have plenty of 
it to give away, and never refuse to accept it from a friendly hand. 
It is one of the things I would have come in free of duty, and I 
would make it the duty of every one to contribute to its free 
circulation. 

We shall not deny our friend D. a dose. He needs and deserves 
it too, as well as any other man. For him I shall prescribe it as 
a sedative, to subdue his hallucinations about workmen's revolts 
and the evils of "scabs." He is the very type of a printer; the 
harder he is pressed the better impression he makes. May he 
reach his centennial, and his mirth be perennial. 

Jollity : It chirps its words in song, breathes life into the dance, 
gives voice to laughter. 

It paints pictures in smiles, moulds its forms in grace, rings its 
chimes in the night. 

It is the plaything of the child, the sunshine of life's noonday, and 
the halo to old age. 
20 



TOAST ON " MATRIMONY." 

This occasion suggests matrimony as the most prominent subject 
for discussion, and a man of my experience could ill afford to ac- 
knowledge that he had not formulated some ideas in regard to it. 
And in whatever direction he might be lacking in knowledge de- 
rived from his own experience, he could readily supply his deficiency 
from the extensive bibliography on the subject, reaching from that 
remote age when it was written that it was not good for man to 
be alone, through the many centuries where it reigns supreme over 
the soul of all poetry, down to modern times, when our neighbor 
of Utah regards a wife as so great a blessing. 

Matrimony may be defined as a state of the Union having peculiar 
naturalization laws. There is no definite time set at which papers 
may be taken out. Some succeed in the very bud of womanhood 
and in that early manhood when the first mustache begins to 
blossom in having conferred upon them the dignity of citizenship, 
while others are placed upon a long probation before being per- 
mitted to enter this blessed state. There are some who fare still 
worse. They are often deluded into hoping that it is not yet too 
late, and the verdict comes at last declaring them ineligible and 
consigning them to the endless misery of single blessedness. 

In this state of matrimony there are other peculiar laws in force. 
In the partnership of married life, no matter how much capital 
the husband may bring into the concern, or whether the fortune 
be constituted solely by the wife's dowry, he is always expected 
to be the silent partner; or, in other words, when the husband is 
rich, he has nothing at all to say; when he is poor, still less. He 
is compensated for this to no slight extent, however, because in 



Addresses. 295 

whatever parts he may be assured of having defects, he can always 
boast of having a better half. 

In this state of matrimony there is a remarkable form of juris- 
prudence; most quarrels are settled by compromise and concession, 
although secession is not altogether impossible. The right of ex- 
patriation from this state is not conceded, but it is occasionally 
resorted to as a dernier ressort. Among the prominent oases which 
present themselves for adjudication in this state are those of illegal 
attachments. The penal code is also characteristic; one of the 
most severe punishments, probably inflicted in order to follow out 
the law, " Tor the wicked there shall be no rest," is to force poor 
husbands with wearied limbs and sleepy eyes to keep themselves 
awake with the sweet lullaby; but there is no way to evade it by 
proving an alibi. . . . 



ADDRESS ON THE OCCASION OF THE DEDICATION OF 
A NEWLY-ACQUIRED PLOT OP GROUND, DELIV- 
ERED AT THE SIMCHATH TORAH FESTIVAL OF 
THE HEBREW HOSPITAL AND ASYLUM ASSOCIA- 
TION OF BALTIMORE CITY, OCTOBER 16, 1881. 

Ladies and Gentlemen : 

This day of rejoicing has been fittingly selected for the celebra- 
tion of an important event in the history of our cherished institu- 
tion. You all remember the misgivings that hovered phantom-like 
around the ceremonies attending the laying of the corner-stone, 
but you also had the satisfaction of witnessing the walls rise safely, 
though slowly, upon the solid foundation laid by the hands of 
earnest men. You also remember that there came a time when 
even the stout hearts that entered so heroically upon the noble 
work began to falter, for the building, far from . . . com- 
pleted, stared them in the face; . . . the treasury had been 
drained of its last penny, and all means of replenishing it seemed 
to have been exhausted ; the anxious inquiries of impatient creditors 
made themselves painfully audible; and a pessimistic imagina- 
tion already pictured the red flag flaunting over the unfin- 
ished edifice. Still they were not permitted to despair. The strug- 
gle was renewed with fresh vigor, and all fears that the project 
would have to be abandoned were effectually dispelled, for a band 
of noble women became the standard-bearers in the contest, and suc- 
cess was assured. 

You assembled here on the day of dedication, and you beheld 
with pride the completed structure in its fine proportions and with 
its satisfactory appointments. ... I call to mind the language 



Addresses. 297 

of one of the speakers, who made the very stones express their 
humiliation at bearing their share of the general debt which hung 
as a . . . cloud over the building. That cloud has passed 
away as if it were but an evanescent shadow; and, though the 
stones have not become silent, they speak quite a different language. 
They bear the ineffaceable record of human misery relieved, of 
triumphant conquests of disease, of tender care bestowed upon the 
stranger, the friendless, and the unfortunate. . . . 

And there the institution stands with its noble record, a pride 
to all who have contributed to its support, giving the most flatter- 
ing testimony to the humane spirit which has existed in our 
midst, . . . and predicting for itself continued prosperity, re- 
lying confidently upon the affection of those who have proved them- 
selves so faithful and so generous to its interests in the past. And 
there it has stood, a beacon-light to the unfortunate ones traveling 
through the dark night of despair with pain and poverty as their 
only companions, rekindling new hopes and showing where there 
were still warm hearts pulsating sympathetically for them, when 
the whole world seemed cold and dreary. How many an unfortu- 
nate has entered its portals, either racked by pain or emaciated by 
the pitiless siege of disease and hunger, or frenzied by the relent- 
less heat of a burning fever, or crippled by severe accident, or ren- 
dered blind in the assaults to which old age falls a victim, or suf- 
fering from some other ill of the thousand that flesh is heir to ! 
And you know how tenderly they have been received and how ten- 
derly they have been cared for. The old and the young, the citi- 
zen and the stranger, the Jew, the Christian, and the unbeliever 
have all . . . found a safe refuge here, without being required 
to present any credential for admission other than that which mis- 
fortune . . . supplies. And you have seen them again when 
they were freed from pain, when their fevers were extinguished, 
when the use of their limbs was restored to them, when the dark 



298 Aabon Feiedenwald, M. D. 

curtain was drawn from before their eyes, when they were helped 
in so many ways to regain their health, and when they reached that 
blessed state in which they were again able to help themselves. 
. . . You . . . witnessed their joy and yon . . . heard 
the expressions of their gratitude, and you realized how insignifi- 
cant after all were the large sums of money that were devoted to 
the organization and support of the institution, when compared 
to the incalculable amount of good which it has been enabled to 
accomplish. How scanty was the seed! How rich has been the 
harvest! But the seed was planted by willing hands, and germi- 
nated under the care of loving hearts, and the rain came in " his 
due season, the first rain and the latter rain," and Heaven smiled 
upon the growth. 

Let us rejoice on this day of rejoicing, and let us be grateful 
that our feeble efforts have been favored by a kind Provi- 
dence. Let us rejoice that we have not been unmindful of that 
voice within us which first urged us to the undertaking, . . . 
which has encouraged us amid vicissitudes and disappointments, 
and which to-day whispers to us its approving words. Let us re- 
joice that, besides providing bounteously for the sick, we have also 
been able to provide ... a comfortable home for the infirm 
aged, for the aged who have lost the loved partners who shared with 
them long the trials of life, who have seen consigned to the grave 
the children upon whom they hoped to lean when bent by years, 
and who in their decrepitude would otherwise now be friendless, 
homeless wanderers, begging for alms. How we loved to look 
upon their venerable forms and to observe the dignity which their 
presence lent to the institution! I have met here those who are 
prominent in my recollections of childhood, whom I saw as actors 
in the busy scenes of life. I knew how cruelly fate had dealt with 
them, and it was no small joy to me in my maturity to see them 



Addeesses. 299 

so well provided for when they were old and helpless. . . . You 
have all had similar experiences. . . . 

And, while we rejoice in looking over the inventory of all which 
this institution has done for suffering humanity, let us not for- 
get to take cognizance of the still greater amount of good which 
it has lavished upon us individually, and upon this community col- 
lectively. It has furnished an altar upon which we can offer our 
united sacrifices; it has fostered that noble spirit which constantly 
reminds us that we are members of a great brotherhood which ex- 
tends the holiest privileges in the duties which it exacts. It has 
been one of the elements in exerting upon our sensibilities that re- 
fining influence which permits us to exult in another's weal and 
to feel the pangs of another's woe. ... It has bound us to- 
gether more strongly in all that is good, and has contributed its 
share to render more despicable all that is base and ignoble. It 
has brushed away many of the cobwebs of materialism which en- 
shroud the mind, and has let in the light of elevated thought. It 
has dealt the heaviest blows against intolerance, the demon that 
would fain make distinctions in the rights of men, . . . that 
always questions the sincerity of others, and that would have all 
thoughts ground out in the mill of a single mind. It has taught 
the valuable lesson that we act our most important part as men 
when we extend . . . each other a helping hand. It has freed 
poverty from that shame which is so often unjustly attached to it, 
and it has shown that, while it is highly honorable to give, it 
should be no humiliation for the sufferer to accept. . . . 

Let us renew our vows of fidelity to this institution; let us stand 
by each other in the support of all other good institutions; let us 
preserve the harmony which has hitherto prevailed among us; and 
Heaven will continue to shower its blessings upon our community. 



ADDRESS DELIVERED AT THE SIMCHATH TORAH FES- 
TIVAL OF THE HEBREW HOSPITAL AND ASYLUM 
ASSOCIATION, 1890. 

Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen: 

We meet again at this festive season to join hands anew and 
to unite our hearts anew in the interests of. an institution which 
has been a credit to, and a just pride of the Jewish community of 
this city these twenty-two years. We have come together again 
to rejoice with each other in the noble work it has done in the 
past, and to offer it good cheer and renewed encouragement for its 
future career. It is an inspiring consciousness to be co-laborers 
in the common cause which this institution represents, and to feel 
entitled to some share in the blessings it has bestowed. Gratify- 
ing as its past history must be to every one who may have con- 
tributed at any time to its welfare, it is especially so to those of us 
who have known it in its earliest infancy, have watched its growth 
during its youthful years, and now behold it, and continue to be 
identified with it, in its full and vigorous development. We knew 
the infant when the clothes with which it was supplied were much 
too large for it; we saw the time when they became too small, 
and its movements were hampered, and a seam had to be opened 
here, and a piece had to be added there. We remember its early 
struggles, and therefore we can fully appreciate the solid founda- 
tion upon which it now stands. This has been accomplished by the 
concentrated efforts of good men, by the unremitting labor of bet- 
ter women, by the tender care of willing hands, by the bounteous 
offerings of generous hearts, by the safe guidance of wise counsel, 
by the salutary influence of an undisturbed harmony, but, above 



Addresses. 301 

all, by the blessings of a kind Providence. We have reason to be 
proud, we have more reason to be grateful that we possess this 
hospital. It has become one of the prominent landmarks, mark- 
ing the corners of our fields to which those in need may come and 
find sustenance. It bears the record of how the stranger has met 
friends, how the homeless have received shelter, how the desponding 
have found hope, how the weak have been given strength, how the 
suffering have been relieved. Yea, a landmark it has become, a 
landmark not forbidding trespass, but extending welcome, a land- 
mark not indicating what should be kept separate, but marking 
the spot where dividing lines come together. When, in life's fierce 
struggles, through the spirit of selfishness, from which none of us, 
perhaps, is entirely free, we are led too far away from the paths 
we have marked out for ourselves, landmarks such as this are po- 
tent influences to lead us back again to a safe starting point, and 
are strong safeguards to prevent our becoming lost to the duties 
we owe to our fellow man. . . . 

When we take a look backward and review the time from the 
organization of this hospital to the present hour, we find it a 
period of great difference, and, indeed, I may be permitted to add, 
a period of considerable indifference among us, difference and in- 
difference which, if not counteracted, would have had the tendency 
of driving us farther and farther away from each other. But, 
thank God, the counteracting power has not been wanting. The 
humane institutions which have been reared in our midst, of which 
the one in whose cause we are assembled to-day is a prominent rep- 
resentative, have had a solidifying influence, and to them it is 
largely due that we have been rescued from a destructive disinte- 
gration. The hand that has been kindly opened to the needy has 
gradually acquired a tenderness which has enabled it to give a 
more friendly grasp, and differences have been forced to give up 
much of their previous bitterness. In the turmoil of the differ- 



302 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

ences which have largely engaged our minds we fortunately did not 
fail to recognize in what we are alike, and in what our hearts re- 
mained bound together ; and there grew out of it a common benevo- 
lence which has welcomed the stranger, protected the widow, and 
cared for the poor; which has given this institution to the aged 
infirm, and to the indigent sick; which has provided a friendly 
home for the unfortunate orphan, and has not forgotten its duties 
to the dead. And, as time rolls on, and we take into account the 
good work we have been enabled to accomplish by this union of 
hearts, we recognize more and more that we are much more alike 
than we were wont to believe ; we begin to see that our differences 
are losing their sharp outlines, and we feel an irresistible yearn- 
ing to come closer and closer to each other. And when we assemble 
around these landmarks, which a true benevolence has so firmly 
placed, we are reminded anew that we are the ancient standard- 
bearers of a pure religion which first proclaimed the duties of man 
towards man, and that we must continue to bear the message to 
all mankind : " Thou shall open thy hand wide unto thy brother, 
to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land." "If a stranger so- 
journeth with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him; but the 
stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born 
among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself." " Thou shalt not 
remove thy neighbor's landmark." What a summary of duty and 
toleration ! Let us continually strive to prove ourselves worthy of 
this dignity by our words and by our works, by our admonition 
and by our example. Let us not lose faith that these principles 
will ultimately prevail, nor be utterly dismayed when confronted 
by the refined venom of German Anti-Semitism, or by Eussia's 
barbarous tyranny. Nations have come and nations have passed 
away, but the laws of God remain and will eventually conquer the 
heart of man. 

There is no better way of showing our gratitude for the blessings 



Addresses. 303 

we enjoy than by remembering those who are less favorably situ- 
ated. There is no prayer tbat we can hope to be more worthy of 
securing for us further protection than the one that comes from 
the heart which is in true sympathy with the stricken brother. In 
liberally supporting an institution like this hospital we testify that 
we have not proved entirely faithless to the old law. Here we 
recognize the sufferer as our brother whether he was " born among 
you " or whether he reaches us by long travels through far distant 
lands; whether he speaks to us in our own language, or appeals to 
us in a foreign tongue. We understand his claims and are ready 
to do him justice, be he one of us or reared in another faith. Here 
we find the widest field to practice the truest humanity, that which 
recognizes the brother, the man, through the rags that misfortune 
has clothed him in, that which duly appreciates the patience, the 
courage, the heroism with which suffering is often borne, that which 
is forgiving towards the shortcomings and weaknesses of poor 
human nature, that which does not set itself up as a rigid judge to 
decide whether one suffering is fully deserving of help, but will 
willingly help whenever it can, — that humanity which, under all 
circumstances, is guided solely by the command, " Thou shalt open 
thy hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, to thy needy." 

There are those who exact a very high standard of human ex- 
cellence of him who needs help. They carefully compute how 
much of his distress was brought on by himself. They would like 
to know how much evil he has done in the past, and are ready to 
predict how much he will sin in the future. They hesitate to ex- 
tend a helping hand, lest by such help they may be encouraging 
unworthiness. They demand that the morals of others should be 
rated at least at par, and would not consider it anything remark- 
able if they were even above par, while they allow themselves quite 
a liberal discount. The sentiment which called this institution 
into being is of a higher order. It directs us to be sure that we do 



304 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

our duty fully in alleviating human suffering. It enjoins upon 
us to help, and not to judge. It commands us to give liberally 
and to forgive willingly. It teaches the valuable lesson that we 
are members of the common human family, to which we are all 
indebted in a thousand ways for what we are and for what we 
enjoy and for what we possess, and that there is no plea upon 
which we can claim exemption from contributing something to the 
welfare of others, something to the common good. The brightest 
talents, no matter how much they may commonly be admired, are 
prostituted, if not directed in some measure to promote the happi- 
ness of others. High stations lose their greatest dignity if a large 
share of their concern is not bestowed upon the lowly and the un- 
fortunate. Wealth becomes valueless, and power is never held by 
a good title, unless they shed comfort in the homes of the poor 
and upon the needy and distressed wherever they may be found. 

We are nothing by ourselves, but, however humble, we can all be- 
come important links in the chain that should hold the human 
family together in a bond which excludes no one, but embraces all 
mankind in one brotherhood. We can hold to each other best by 
working together in doing good. It is this working together in 
doing good in everything which relates to the elevation of man that 
marks the highest form of civilization. It is this working together 
which finds no task too difficult, no field too great. It is not lim- 
ited in space, nor restricted in time. The power required for the 
accomplishment of great results can be supplied by the aggregate 
contributions of many willing hands, and those furnished by the 
weakest are never insignificant. In its program is embraced every- 
thing that can extend human happiness, everything that can refine 
the human heart, everything that can enrich the human intellect. 
It builds hospitals, establishes asylums, promotes schools of learn- 
ing, provides libraries, encourages art. The whole earth is its 
workshop, and the clang of its labor reverberates over the mountains 



Addresses. 305 

and across the sea; its echoes evoke a harmony which binds the 
continents together. It never ceases, for one generation impresses 
the next into its service, and it is the most precious legacy -which 
the past has bequeathed to us. And this work will continue, and 
will be reenforced when it is wanting, until finally everywhere 
" thy brother, thy poor, and thy needy " will find thy hand wide 
open unto them, and the stranger will not be vexed. 

The progress which marks our day has, by the abolition of time 
and space, brought peoples closer together in their intercourse with 
each other. Landmarks are no longer so far apart. Nations are 
more and more becoming neighbors. They will all find their way 
best when they are guided by their own landmarks. We live among 
all the nations and we still have to bear the message, " Thou shalt 
not remove thy neighbor's landmark." Nations are like individuals 
in this, that they may reach the same destination although they 
choose a very different starting point. By making an unfavorable 
start they may follow circuitous paths, and long delays may occur, 
but their landmarks must be respected, lest they go altogether 
astray. It should be our concern that we ever preserve our land- 
marks. How we place them, where we place them, and how we 
maintain them will indicate to the world whether we have proven 
ourselves worthy of the trust committed to our charge. Israel has 
been the stranger that has been vexed in many lands these many 
centuries. Let us hope that the time will soon dawn when he will 
everywhere be recognized as a brother; and, as he is the best wit- 
ness to tell how the world stands in its relation to truth, justice, 
and toleration, so is he to testify for or against himself concerning 
his conduct as the custodian of God's holy law. Condemning the 
sin of others does not suffice to establish our own virtue. Some- 
thing more tangible is required to entitle us to credit. We shall 
be asked, " Where are your landmarks ? " The story of the poor 
and the needy will be heard, and will be believed. The stranger's 



306 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

evidence cannot be ruled out. Let us hope that the judgment will 
be rendered in our favor. Let us further hope that those who have 
been our accusers will become our friends, and that, as time rolls 
on, there will be more and more who are brothers, and fewer who 
are strangers. Let us be grateful that our lot has been cast in a 
blessed land where the cultivation of these sentiments has found a 
fertile soil, a land in which one is rated according to what he is, 
and not according to who he is, a land in which one is held re- 
sponsible only for what he does, not for what he believes. 

May this blessed land, among all the nations of the earth, be- 
come the landmark by which human rights shall firmly be estab- 
lished forever. 



ADDKESS AT THE PUKIM BANQUET HELD BY THE 
HEBEEW LADIES' ORPHANS' AID SOCIETY, FEB- 
RUARY 27, 1885. 

Ladies and Gentlemen : 

It is my distinguished privilege this evening to speak to you for 
the ladies of the Orphans' Aid Society in behalf of an object which 
is dear to their hearts and which is equally dear to you, — the He- 
brew Orphan Asylum of Baltimore. Speaking for the ladies, as 
I do, I may have committed a great error in not consulting them 
first regarding the points upon which my remarks should touch, for 
they know well how to touch the deepest sympathies and how to 
evoke the most generous responses; and in neglecting to do this, 
it was not, I must confess, from any consideration that in pursuing 
that course I would touch your sympathies either too deeply or 
cause you to respond too generously. I was actuated rather by the 
conviction that you not only knew what the ladies wanted you to 
do here, besides spending a very pleasant evening among your 
friends and among the friends of a cherished institution, but that 
you were ready and willing to act as you have done on previous 
. . . occasions, in that liberal spirit which betokens at once your 
continued devotion to the institution in whose interest you have 
assembled, and your warm appreciation of the noble, indefatigable, 
and self-sacrificing spirit which the ladies have again exhibited in 
making this festivity a success. 

If I should yield to the temptation of portraying to you the 
beneficent work which our Orphan Asylum has accomplished, how 
it first manifested its existence, how it overcame obstacles which 
seemed almost unsurmountable, even passing through the ordeal of 



308 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

fire, and finally assumed proportions which no one had dreamed of, 
you would interrupt me and say, " Stop now, you are introducing 
to us an old and a very intimate acquaintance." Yes, our Orphan 
Asylum is the product of the general benevolent spirit which has 
always existed in our community, to the advancement of whose 
interests every generous hand has contributed a share, and in whose 
continued prosperity every benevolent heart has felt a deep inter- 
est. To which of you is it a stranger ? You know who were pres- 
ent at its birth, who stood around its cradle anxiously watching 
and invoking the blessings of Heaven that no evil should befall 
it. You know who guarded its early steps and lovingly provided 
fresh air and sunshine and wholesome nourishment, and finally 
rejoiced, as only loving hearts can rejoice, when it attained that 
vigorous youth, denoting future health and strength and life. They 
were your fathers, your mothers, your brothers, your sisters, your 
friends, yourselves. 

And although our Orphan Asylum has now reached such a growth 
that it no longer requires your solicitude, but has become the pride 
of the Israelites of Baltimore and a credit to the city, it still needs 
your love, it still needs your helping hand; and the ladies who 
know the needs of the institution have invited you around this 
festive board to acquaint you with this fact. They have chosen a 
very opportune time, not only in consideration of the depleted con- 
dition of the treasury at this season of the year, but in commemo- 
rating a great national event at this season we are reminded of a 
very early and exceedingly well-conducted Orphan Asylum, prob- 
ably the first in the history of our people. It is true it was a very 
small affair, but not of mean significance, for Mordecai was its 
superintendent, and the successful manner in which it was con- 
ducted is fully established by the careful training which Esther, 
our heroine, received under its hospitable roof and by the many em- 
bellishments of character with which she entered the world. She 



Addresses. 309 

received the education of a simple Jewish maiden, but this qualified 
her to become the queen of a great empire. Her example has had 
an influence upon every true Jewish maiden ever since, and has be- 
stowed upon them such charms that, if there were not so deplorable 
a scarcity of kings, they all would become queens. 

The ladies of the Orphans' Aid Society have not only cultivated 
and developed those graces which in Esther shone so bright in the 
Persian court, but they have adopted her methods of accomplish- 
ing great results; for, when the Mordecais of tbe Orphan Asylum 
send them doleful reports of an empty treasury, they prepare a 
great feast and gladden your hearts, and deliverance is sure to 
follow. 

You all know, no doubt, that at one time in Jewish history the 
Jews were forbidden to read the weekly portion of the law in the 
Sabbath service and, to prevent its influence from being lost, a 
chapter was selected from the prophets which presented some strong 
analogy. Though none of you are prevented from so doing, I fear 
there may be some who will not be present at the public reading of 
the book of Esther in the synagogues; to them, this festival will 
serve as the Haftwrah, because, in giving your full sympathy to our 
orphans, the image of Esther will rise before you, for she came 
from this class, and, with her image before you, the great drama 
in which she assumed so prominent a role cannot be forgotten by 
you. And, when you will again visit the Orphan Asylum, you will 
see in each little girl a future beautiful Esther, chaste, loving, 
lovable, a true Jewish maiden, clinging to her faith and clinging to 
her people; and in every little boy a future Mordecai, pious, brave, 
unbending, and yet so tender that in reviewing the character of 
Mordecai the great, he will admire most in him the fact that he 
adopted the little Esther as his child. 



21 



"CHARITY," AN ADDRESS DELIVERED AT THE AN- 
NUAL BANQUET OF THE HEBREW BENEVOLENT 
SOCIETY, DECEMBER 1, 1892. 

Mr. President : 

It is an inspiring scene which is presented by this large assembly, 
brought together in response to the annual call of this time-hon- 
ored society. It is at all times gratifying to meet friends, to meet 
so many friends with happy faces beaming with good cheer, extend- 
ing the friendly hand, and speaking the kindly word; it is especi- 
ally gratifying to be among those who have renewed on this occa- 
sion their pledge of loyalty to a cause which, while primarily aim- 
ing at the amelioration of the condition of the poor and unfortu- 
nate, is no less to be recognized for the elevating influence it 
exerts upon its promoters as well; a cause which not only lends 
hope, encouragement, and support to the needy, but offers wealth 
the only means of investing itself with dignity, a cause which unites 
all mankind in one grand brotherhood. 

We have met on this occasion in the interests of an institution 
which represents organized charity. Organized charity signifies 
charity supported by means contributed by the many and dis- 
tributed by methods thought out and administered by the few. The 
object of such organization is obvious. It is to give charity its 
greatest efficiency, to offer it the widest scope, and to guard it 
against imposition. It means more. Every enlightened commu- 
nity recognizes its collective duty to provide for the alleviation of 
misery inflicted by the vicissitudes of life for which the individual 
sufferer cannot provide, unaided. It means that by such organi- 
zations the community as a body assumes the care of its suffering 



Addresses. 311 

members, regarding them as an integral part of itself, for, as the 
living organism cannot escape more or less injury from the suffer- 
ing of its parts, neither can society remain insensible to the suffer- 
ing of any of its members without deteriorating in its moral tone. 
In all organisms in nature, when an individual organ is stricken, 
the other unaffected organs combine to bring relief to the suffering 
one, by each contributing as much as it is able, illustrating fully 
what is meant by " Ish Ke-Mattenath Yado," " each according to 
his ability." So long as the individual parts of an organism busy 
themselves with the work of repair of a suffering member, the dis- 
ease may safely be regarded as one of local character; whereas, 
whenever a suffering member in such an organism seems to be 
abandoned to its fate, the disease may be designated as one more 
or less due to constitutional vitiation, and consequently the well- 
being of the whole organism may be regarded as imperiled. We 
observe the analogue of this in society. Whenever want overtakes 
an individual or dire poverty invades a family, or even many fami- 
lies, the misfortune may be looked upon as mitigated when hun- 
dreds of unseen hands are ready to bring relief, or better still, as 
the Hebrew Benevolent Society has illustrated these many years, 
when these unseen hands have already placed in reserve the means 
to meet the emergency. The fulness and the promptness and the 
tenderness with which this relief is administered supply the meas- 
ure by which the moral development of society can accurately be 
gauged. On the other hand, if society could remain unconcerned 
about the poor and needy, such a society would soon be threatened 
with a degree of moral degradation which it would be forced, for 
the sake of its own safety, to provide against. 

From this discussion of the duty which society owes to its poor 
and needy it becomes apparent that it is a duty which it owes to 
itself. Every one whose means exceed his needs is therefore in 
duty bound, in honor bound, to contribute his share to organized 



312 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

charity. There is no one so situated that he does not owe much 
to society. There are few so fortunate that, even if so inclined, 
they could wholly liquidate that debt. There are still fewer whose 
achievements have been so great as to entitle them to a settlement 
in full for all that society has done for them, showing a balance in 
their favor. Ordinary mortals can hardly aspire to do more at 
their very best than offer a decent acknowledgment of favors re- 
ceived, and make a partial payment on account. 

Organized charity does not preclude individual charity. There 
is plenty of room and there is sufficient demand for both. No 
man, however, can justify himself in withdrawing his support from 
the public work by the private charity he may choose to give. 
Upon such men bear the forcible words of the great teacher Hillel, 
" Separate not thyself from the congregation." Society could not 
afford to risk its welfare by relying upon the spontaneous but dis- 
concerted efforts of its individual members in caring for the poor. 
This method, besides having the disadvantage of inefficiency, has 
against it the formidable objection that the poor man, instead of 
presenting himself as a beneficiary with just claims, is driven to the 
degradation of beggary and forced to rely upon the pity which 
the story of his suffering may excite. The poor man is " a man 
for a' that." He has a manhood to preserve which he has a right 
in all cases to hope will survive his poverty. He should not be 
left to grope his way, nor forced to expose his condition in the 
market place. He should readily meet those who will take his 
hand and help him to find the road which will lead him to a brighter 
day. The pain of poverty is in itself hard enough to bear; he 
should be spared its humiliation. The bread that is given him 
should not be poisoned by bitter words. His faults should not 
weigh too heavily against him, for he has already paid the penalty 
by his poverty. His accuser should remember in the testimony he 
gives that he himself is not perfect in the eyes of God, and that he 



Addresses. 313 

may have a large account for which he will some day have to plead 
for forgiveness. There is no code according to which it could 
be ruled that the poor man must be better than others, and, if his 
poverty has made him worse, he has a double claim upon our 
sympathy. 

These are sentiments which form the basis upon which this 
society has been reared, and out of which its methods have been 
developed. The Hebrew Benevolent Society, indeed, may be looked 
upon as a great corporation. The poor own the preferred shares, 
and we hold the common stock, upon which we are willing to pay 
our annual assessment. We come together once a year to hear the 
report read, and to contribute the means by which the dividends 
on the preferred shares are to be declared. When the emergency 
has arisen, we have been known to meet more than once a year. 
This society differs from a corporation in general in that there 
can be no doubt that it does possess a soul; and, possessing a soul, 
and a very noble soul, it differs still more from corporations in 
general in that it has adopted the rule that, the harder the times, 
the bigger should be the dividend. The preferred shares are fre- 
quently transferred on the books of the society, and, a fact to as- 
tonish the ordinary financier, these books show that occasionally 
the preferred shares have been relinquished by their holders and 
the common stock accepted in their stead. Unfortunately, the 
books also show that at times transfers have taken a sadder turn, 
for some who long held the common stock were at last forced to 
exchange it for preferred shares. So intense has been the pride 
of many in the good name of this corporation that they made ample 
provision that, after their death, the assessment upon the amount 
representing their share of common stock should continue to be 
paid. 

It is not uncommon that common stock is subjected to a process 
which is called watering. Ours has not escaped the general 



314 Aaron Feiedenwald, M. D. 

fate. The water used, however, was not that which would cause 
a deluge, but it was the refreshing dew from Heaven and the 
blessed rain, so that there might be gathered " thy corn, thy wine, 
and thine oil." 

Charity is indeed a noble virtue. It is Heaven-born, and sent 
into the world as the grand ambassador from the high court above 
to give succor to the poor, to be the protector of the widow and the 
orphan, and to be the ministering angel wherever misfortune has 
laid its heavy hand. There is no consciousness in which we may 
more truly rejoice than that of fully understanding its holy mis- 
sion; there is nothing that can bestow upon us greater honor than 
meritorious service in its cause. Its ministry dates from the dawn 
of time, and civilization bears more and more the impress of its 
salutary influence. It never fails to raise its solemn protest wher- 
ever prejudice, intolerance, and persecution have sown their bane- 
ful seed; and, although it may not always secure for itself a suc- 
cessful hearing at the moment, it never speaks entirely in vain, 
for its echoes reverberate through time. Charity, however, an- 
nounces its approach much more often in loving smiles, speaking 
its words in touching strains, and manifesting its presence in grace- 
ful form. It will forever hold up in flaming letters the genealogy 
of man, reaching to the one great Father; and it will never cease 
to demand that all the children of God regard each other as 
brothers. 



ADDEESS DELIVERED AT THE ANNUAL MEETING OF 
THE BALTIMORE BRANCH OP THE ALLIANCE 
ISRAELITE UNIVERSELLE, MARCH 19, 1893. 

. . . The Alliance Israelite Universelle was established at a 
time which may properly be regarded as a golden age by our 
European coreligionists. Full participation in all political rights 
had been accorded onr brethren in France. In England disabili- 
ties had been relegated to the story of the past by the progress of 
enlightenment which distinguishes that country. In Germany the 
ghettoes had disappeared, and those who had so long been their 
unfortunate inhabitants could step out into and breathe more 
freely in the fresh air of freedom, and realize that an Israelite 
could have rights in the state as well as duties. In Austria a new 
era had dawned. In the great struggle for a fuller recognition of 
the rights of the many nationalities comprising that great empire, 
there came a solution on the side of right, in the benefits of which 
our brethren were accorded a liberal share. Even in the domain 
of the Czar the condition of our brethren had materially improved 
under the influence of Alexander II. ; and, while they had still to 
suffer from oppressive laws, their lot had been made so much 
more tolerable that they were comparatively content. Harold 
Frederic gives a very graphic account of this period in his excel- 
lent book, " The New Exodus," describing under the name of the 
" Golden Age " a period which every one must acknowledge falls 
very far short of being worthy of modern civilization. But still, 
as Russian despotism had somewhat relented, the hope was enter- 
tained that the example of the more civilized nations would before 
long be more fully followed. It was a hopeful period, and the 



316 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

organization of the Alliance Israelite Universelle was opportune. 
The objects formulated at that time, for which it has uninter- 
ruptedly labored since, are, first, to secure equality for Israelites 
everywhere and to promote their moral advancement; second, to 
lend material aid to those who suffer because of their being Israel- 
ites; third, to promote publications favoring these objects. 

The establishment and maintenance of schools in the Orient to 
foster European culture and encourage industrial pursuits offered 
a wide field for the application of these principles, and up to recent 
years formed almost exclusively the work of the Alliance. The 
persecutions to which our brethren in Eussia were subjected in 
1882, however, and the renewal and intensification in 1890 of these 
persecutions, which continue unabated up to this time, added a 
very sad work to the activities which it had hitherto assumed. 
Every avenue by which the unfortunate ones could escape from this 
annihilating oppression was availed of, and it was mainly the 
representatives of the Alliance who directed this exodus and dis- 
tributed the means that had been contributed for the relief of the 
misery by which it was attended. The work which the Alliance 
has done in bringing forward the men and in organizing the various 
committees to deal with the questions arising out of this persecution 
will ever be most creditably connected with what will be known in 
history as the memorable martyrdom of the Eussian Jews towards 
the close of the great nineteenth century. When that prince of 
philanthropists, Baron Maurice de Hirsch, conceived in 1889 the 
project of his munificent foundation for aiding Eussian immigrants 
in America in their early struggles, to save them from pauperism, 
and to make it possible for them to secure within a short time a 
livelihood in honorable pursuits, it was to the Alliance that he 
looked for the initiatory movement toward the consummation of 
his purpose. The first communication which reached America on 
this subject was from the central body of the Alliance in Earis and 



Addresses. 317 

was directed to Moses A. Dropsie, Esq., for many years President 
of the Philadelphia branch of the Alliance, and to Judge Myer A. 
Isaacs, similarly connected with the branch in New York, and a 
member of the Central Committee. This co mm unication requested 
that these gentlemen should invite to a conference others whom 
they might select, to devise a plan for carrying out the Baron's 
object. I had the honor of being one of those invited to this con- 
ference, which took place in Philadelphia. The Central Commit- 
tee of the Baron de Hirsch Pund was organized in 1890, and Judge 
Isaacs was made President thereof. The honor of attending the 
conference in Philadelphia, and my appointment as Chairman of 
the Baron de Hirsch Committee of Baltimore, I undoubtedly owe 
to my connection with this branch. 

The Alliance has done a very important work in bringing into 
touch with each other men in very distant parts of the world who 
are willing to listen to appeals that come from afar and are ready 
to join hands in extending that refined benevolence which can feel 
for the wants of others, though they dwell in remote lands, and 
who can understand misery, though it be expressed in a strange 
tongue. . . / 

1 The remainder of the address consists of a detailed account of the 
various activities of the Alliance. 



" A TEIP TO PALESTINE," AN ADDBESS BEAD BEFOEE 
THE YOUNG MEN'S HEBEEW ASSOCIATION OF 
NEW YOBK, FEBKUAKY 25, 1899. 

Palestine has always held a high place in the affections of the 
Jews. The hope of eventually returning to their old home sus- 
tained them in their sad wanderings during eighteen centuries. 
Driven from place to place, they remained a homeless nation. Now 
and then a short rest was granted, and they dreamed that they 
had found a new home; but, alas! it was but a dream. What 
wonder, then, that in late years, when almost the whole world has 
simultaneously risen against them with a fierceness and a cruelty 
that has seldom been equalled in past ages, thousands upon thou- 
sands have sought homes in that land towards which they had 
turned in their prayers during the years of their persecution, to 
that land in which their ancestors had received the divine revela- 
tion, to that land which had been the forum of their prophets, to 
that land in which first was heard the holy song of their inspired 
poets. Some who had struggled and suffered, who were content 
still to suffer, but could struggle no longer, came to pass their 
last days in prayer and to die in their old home; and some came 
who had suffered and struggled, and who were willing to suffer 
and struggle still further, to become the pioneers in the great work 
of building a new home where their old home had stood, in which 
the nation should undergo such a regeneration as would insure it 
peace at home, secure respect for its children everywhere, and 
inaugurate the time when the world shall acknowledge that Israel 
has become a blessing to all the nations. 

To see that Old Home, to gaze upon the places that have been 



Addresses. 319 

the scenes of events so memorable in history, to mingle my tears 
with those of our brethren who weep at the wailing place for the 
desolation which the despoiler has wrought, and to grasp the strong 
and friendly hands of those who have begun the building of the 
New Home, was the object of the journey whose story I am about 
to tell. . . . 

Leaving JSTew York on the 16th of April last, accompanied by 
Mrs. Friedenwald, a delightful voyage of eight days brought us 
to Gibraltar; in four days more we reached Naples. . . . Two 
days more, and we were carried to Port Said; from whence the 
Egyptian Eailway conveyed us to Cairo in a few hours. . . . 

The trip [from Alexandria to Jaffa] lasted two days. Jaffa 
lies directly on the coast, with no harbor to break the force of 
the sea, and therefore does not always offer a kind welcome to the 
traveler who seeks to disembark there. During fine weather 
there is no difficulty in landing at Jaffa, but when the sea is stormy 
it would be a hazardous attempt. Landing is effected, the steamer 
having anchored some considerable distance out, by means of small 
boats which convey the passengers and baggage ashore. The 
principal danger in disembarkation is due to quite formidable 
rocks which project from the sea very near to land with smaller 
or larger interspaces. It is very obvious how readily a wild sea 
would dash such boats to pieces against these rocks, and it there- 
fore often occurs that steamers do not stop until they reach the 
next landing place. When the sea is calm, the skilful Arab boat- 
swain does not find it difficult to pass between the rocks in safety. 

The day on which we arrived was propitious. Mr. Kaminitz, the 
genial proprietor of the Hotel Palestine, who had been apprised 
of our coming, came on board the steamer, extended us a warm 
" Shalom Alechem," that Jewish greeting which, 'mid the Oriental 
scenes so new to us, with the strange people, speaking their strange 
language, crowding in small boats about the vessel and scrambling 



320 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

wildly aboard, made us feel safe and satisfied. Through his . . . 
thoughtfulness, he delighted us with news from home before we 
even landed, for he brought with him the letters that had been 
addressed to his care. We soon descended from the steamer into 
one of the boats, and in a very short time we stood upon the soil 
of the ancient home of Israel. How grateful I felt for this realiza- 
tion of a life-long dream ! What sacred memories were awakened, 
what a fervent new hope the old hope had become! 

We were made comfortable in the hotel, which, while Jewish, is 
liberally patronized by Christians and Mussulmans. A gentleman 
of the latter class, holding a distinguished position in Jerusalem, 
who was our neighbor at the table, spoke English fairly well, and 
gave us much interesting information in regard to the manners 
and customs of the country. We learned that the Mohammedans 
prefer the Jewish table on account of their dietary laws, which are 
somewhat similar to the Jewish dietary laws. They do not eat swine 
flesh, and have a sort of Shechitah [method of ritual slaughtering]. 

Jaffa, as we know from the Bible, is a very ancient city. It was 
probably never very large, and is still a small town of about six 
thousand inhabitants. It does not look as old as one would sup- 
pose. There has been much new life implanted in this old city 
during the past twenty years, due in part to the settlement of a 
thrifty colony of German Templars in the city, and the agricultural 
colony of the same community, Sarona, in its close proximity; but 
more largely to the increase of Jewish settlers in the city itself, 
and the influence of Jewish colonies which have grown up in the 
country north and south of it. Its commerce has increased three- 
fold during the last few years. It has many substantial stone 
buildings, and its streets are always enlivened with Oriental scenes, 
with which we had already become familiar in our short sojourn 
in Egypt. The natives in their Oriental costumes present quite 
a picturesque appearance. Their complexions embrace all shades 



Addresses. 321 

of brunette, becoming darker and darker until finally both the 
rich pigment and the characteristic features of the transplanted 
African are reached. They are all dark, but for convenience are 
classified as white and black, and they live in great harmony and 
close social relations, which will cause less surprise when we con- 
sider that there are no elections in the Turkish domain. The large 
number of camels and donkeys carrying all sorts of burdens lend 
an especially animated character to the streets. Wagons have, up 
to quite recent years, been considered superfluous ; the few that are 
now seen form an innovation introduced principally by the Jewish 
colonists. Soon after our arrival in Jaffa we were most cordially 
met by the Committee, " Ha-Waad ha-Poel" representing the inter- 
ests of the CJioveve Zion Association of Odessa in the colonies. . . . 
From these gentlemen we obtained a fund of knowledge regarding 
the colonies, and directions as to our further journeys. The Beth 
ha-Sefer, the school specially fostered by the Choveve Zion Asso- 
ciation of Eussia, is an institution of more than ordinary im- 
portance. Here Hebrew is taught as a living language. It has 
become the language of conversation among the pupils, and in- 
struction in all the branches of knowledge is imparted in the 
sacred tongue. The children evidently love the ancient language, 
which has been made their own, and with the language there has 
been infused into them a love for their race and a love for their 
religion which is thoroughly pervaded with the national idea. This 
school is designed to be the model school for the colonies. The 
founders of this school have early recognized that, besides properly 
preparing and planting the land, it is equally important to rear the 
young generation so that men and women may come forth who 
shall prove themselves worthy to occupy the land, and who, among 
all its products, shall stand out prominently as its noblest yield. 

We spent about three days very agreeably in Jaffa. During 
this time we visited Mikweh Israel, the agricultural school of 



322 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

the Alliance Israelite Unwerselle, and Pethach Tikwah, one of 
the colonies, both reached after a short drive from Jaffa. Of these 
I shall speak presently. I desire to mention here that there is 
much intelligence and refinement ... in Jaffa. This society 
is made up of the teachers of the various schools, physicians, 
the committee of the Choveve Zion, officers of the administra- 
tion of the various colonies who visit Jaffa from time to time, and 
other settlers at this port . . . who have been well educated, 
and . . . have had the advantage of good social intercourse. 

The Alliance Israelite Universelle can justifiably point with pride 
to Mikweh Israel, not only because it is the only agricultural school 
in the East, but also because there are few to be found in other 
parts of the world that can equal it in the thoroughness of their 
instruction and in the salutary influence which they have wielded. 
The waste land which surrounds it for miles upon miles testifies to 
the superior intelligence and untiring industry that has made it 
the garden spot of the region — a model which has served to direct 
the newer agricultural enterprises in Palestine; and it forms such 
a contrast to the country in which it lies that it is like an oasis in 
the desert. 

About sixteen to eighteen young men are sent out from this 
school annually, and they find positions in the colonies and else- 
where as gardeners; some have even been sent to Argentine. We 
had a most delightful stroll through the groves, consisting of 
orange, lemon and ethrog trees. These are well cared for. They 
are protected from the cold winds by eucalyptus trees and hedges 
of acacia and pomegranate. The acacia has a most beautiful yellow, 
highly fragrant flower, from which, and from other flowers as 
well, perfumes, we are informed, are manufactured in the colony 
Yesud ha-Maalah. Much has been done here in the planting of 
trees, among which must be mentioned the palm, almond, apricot, 
olive, and mulberry; the latter is important for its bearing on the 



Addresses. 323 

silk culture. The institution derives its principal income from vine 
culture, the wine produced being of very fine quality. The 
various kinds of cereals and vegetables are also planted here, but 
not in large quantities. In this direction, the object in view is 
the instruction that is imparted, and not the yield. We saw 
wheat, oats, barley, and other plants from many countries, planted 
and grown under varying conditions, to show the pupils the prac- 
tical results of non-fertilization, fertilization, and the special ad- 
vantages of certain fertilizers, and to demonstrate what kinds 
are suited to the soil and climate. 

Charles Netter must have been inspired with a spirit almost pro- 
phetic to have conceived the idea which called this great institu- 
tion into being. The undertaking met with many obstacles in its 
early career, and the Alliance began to hesitate about giving the 
required pecuniary aid. Netter threw his soul into this important 
work, which he regarded as a great beginning by which his breth- 
ren should be led back again to their normal condition, an agri- 
cultural life. He left France, settled at Mikweh Israel, devoted a 
large private fortune to making it a success when other means 
failed, and remained there until he died. A very imposing monu- 
ment marks his last resting place amid the scenes of the labors 
which made his name immortal. He held the best of titles to the 
distinguished location of his grave. He created his own Gan Eden. 

After a full conference with our friends in Jaffa we concluded 
to visit the colonies near that city, and then to reach Sejet, a sta- 
tion on the railroad to Jerusalem, and, after devoting as much time 
as was needed to seeing Jerusalem, to proceed to the other colonies. 
In continuing my story, I shall not sandwich Jerusalem in between 
the colonies, on account of the limits of this occasion. . . . 
The colonies which we visited on our first trip were : Pethach 
Tikwah, Eishon le-Zion, Ekron, Eechoboth, Ghederah, and Kas- 
tinje; Wadi el-Chanin, which belongs to the group, we had to 
pass by. 



324 Aaeon Friedenwald, M. D. 

Pethach Tikwah was included in the program of one of our ex- 
cursions from Jaffa. . . . We reached our destination after 
about one and a half hours' drive over a very dusty road, through 
a country left to lie barren, for the most part, with but feeble at- 
tempts at cultivation here and there. 

Somewhat further on in our way we passed a wagon filled witb 
men and women who were pointed out to us as Gerim, " prose- 
lytes." They have quite an interesting history. They are Rus- 
sians from the Caucasus who have adopted Judaism, have found 
their way here under very great difficulties, and consider it as their 
greatest happiness to be reckoned among the Jews. They are em- 
ployed in Pethach Tikwah, and are very industrious and extremely 
pious. There are quite a number of these people who are Jews in 
the fullest sense of the term, and have been so for quite a long 
period. It is said that there are no less than five hundred fami- 
lies of this community in Russia. They are known as Sabbatniker 
[Sabbatarians]. They owe their origin to a movement which be- 
gan in the sixteenth century. 1 At first the Jewish Sabbath was 
adopted; later they appealed to the Rabbis for instruction, and 
ultimately they became ardent followers of the Jewish faith. They 
have been subjected to very cruel persecution, and all yearn to 
come to the Holy Land to live in communion with their brethren 
in faith. 

In approaching Pethach Tikwah, a pleasant impression is at 
once made by the beautiful background of green forest which the 
landscape presents. An avenue lined by fine shade trees leads to 
the village. At the end of this avenue, upon an elevated spot, the 
beautiful synagogue is most appropriately placed. The house of 
the administrator is quite a fine building; those of the colonists 
are of a modest character, and provide both cheerful and comfort- 
able homes. This is one of the colonies of Baron Edmond de 

1 See Jewish Encyclopedia, Art. Judaizing Heresy. 



Addresses. 325 

Rothschild, without whose munificent aid the success of this new 
Jewish resettlement of Palestine would have been an impossibility. 
The vineyards in this, as well as in almost all of the other colonies, 
form the chief source from which the colonists derive their support, 
although grain is also raised successfully. Although the natives 
have received in the development of the colonies many valuable 
object-lessons as regards the advantages of modern means in agri- 
culture, it is also true that in some respects the colonists had to 
learn and adopt the methods pursued from time immemorial in the 
East. This is illustrated in the manner in which the wells have 
been dug, and in the solid lining of masonry by which they have 
been fortified. . . . 

Among other signs of desolation which one observes in traveling 
through Palestine, the absence of trees is especially conspicuous. 
It is only where Jews have again settled that the forests are begin- 
ning to be restored. In Pethach Tikwah alone, forty thousand 
eucalyptus trees of goodly growth testify to the munificence and 
far-sightedness of the Baron. Besides the several important re- 
spects in which these trees will prove their utility, very much can 
safely be expected of them in counteracting the malaria with which 
this colony is afflicted. With the growth of these trees, which is 
most remarkably rapid, the evil has already decidedly diminished, 
and it is hoped that it will gradually disappear. What wonder, 
then, that one hears nothing but praises and blessings for the 
Baron and p^ers for his preservation ? 

The colony is provided with a good school, modeled after the 
one in Jaffa, except that the Ashkenazic pronunciation of Hebrew 
has been retained. Hebrew is the language in general use, but 
Arabic, Turkish, and French are also taught. . . . We were 
greatly pleased with our visit to Pethach Tikwah, for we found in it 
a highly developed Jewish colony. The trees and vines and fields 
reflected . . . creditably the intelligence and industry of the 
22 



326 Aaron Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

new Jewish farmer, but our greatest satisfaction was derived from 
the assurance of our brethren that they were contented with their 
lot in their new life and in their new home. 

Keturning to Jaffa, we proceeded further on our journey. . . . 
We again availed ourselves of Cook's carriages, proceeding joyfully 
on our way, not minding the heat or dust. We found it rather 
remarkable that notwithstanding the high temperature we were not 
oppressed. This is due to the extreme dryness of the atmosphere. 
In walking for hours through the colonies we did not perspire, and 
after a drive of six and eight hours we were surprised that the 
horses, which were not spared, did not sweat. The time required 
to reach Eishon le-Zion did not exceed one hour. This is the great 
colony of the region, being a central point for all the colonies of 
Judea. The Baron has erected here at great expense a vast plant 
for the manufacture and storage of wine, and also for the produc- 
tion of everything connected with this important industry, and it 
is to this point that all the grapes of the colonies of this region 
are brought and sold to the Baron. . . . We were first shown 
through quite a number of deep cellars, supplied with long rows of 
great casks which in the aggregate contain about 30,000 hectoliters 
of wine. The superstructure consists of a series of extensive and 
connected buildings, each serving a special purpose in the great 
work which is accomplished here. In these separate depart- 
ments elaborate machinery is provided, all of which is driven from 
a common source, a Corliss engine. . . . 

We were next taken through the machine shop. Here, as well 
as in every other part of the establishment, only Jews are at work. 
The superintendent of the shop is a Mr. Bapo, a perfect Goliath 
in form, with a kindly face, a native of Jerusalem, who was edu- 
cated at the Alliance School. ... It was refreshing to see our 
brethren swinging the sledge-hammers with ease and showing amid 
the sparks that were flying in all directions that they loved their 



Addresses. 327 

work and they were satisfied with their station in life. All the 
iron work needed in the construction of the rest of the buildings 
came out of this shop. 

There are several grades of red and white wine produced here 
that have attained a well-merited reputation among connoisseurs. 
Cognac, which is rated as the equal of the best that can be found 
in any market, is also distilled here. I cannot refrain from adding 
my commendation of the quality of the wine. In enjoying its 
pleasant taste and exhilarating effect, I felt that it must have 
been this sort of which it is written E>ljK"n3^ n»B» i"l " and wine 
that maketh glad the heart of man." . . . 

Mr. Boris Ossawetzsky, the manager of the wine department, 
a fine musician, has formed an orchestra that gives performances 
every Sunday evening, which contribute greatly to the entertain- 
ment of the people and have given opportunity for refined enjoy- 
ment. A fine, capacious building has been erected by the colonists 
themselves for library and meeting purposes, and it is here that the 
concerts are given. Synagogue and school have been amply pro- 
vided for, and everything betokens a community of earnestness 
and intelligence. . . . Hospitality greets one at every step, 
and the colonists feel grateful for every indication that the Jews 
of other parts of the world take an interest in them and in the 
ideals for which they are striving. They have worked hard. They 
have proved that they can do the hardest work well. They feel 
proud of having surmounted the great difficulties of their early ex- 
periences. They are full of courage and full of hope. They love 
Palestine. They feel that they have at last found a home. Be- 
sides the intellectual improvement and moral elevation which has 
been a direct outcome of the new ideals in their new life, the more 
natural environment in which they have been placed has had a 
physically beneficial effect which is noticeable in their bearing and 
in their movements. It was very gratifying to us to see them 



328 Aaron Pbiedenwald, M. D. 

mount their horses with the agility of the Arab, and to find them 
fully masters of everything that horsemanship requires. In the 
early history of the colonies, the Arabs made the mistake of trying 
to intimidate them. It must have been a very good lesson which 
they received, for, from their very good and peaceful conduct since, 
they seem not to have forgotten it. . . . 

Leaving Eishon le-Zion in the afternoon, we arrived at Becho- 
both towards evening, but there was still time left to see much of 
the colony, which presents much the appearance of a German vil- 
lage. This colony made a good impression in every respect. It 
was founded by an association in Warsaw named Menuchah 
we-Nachalah, " Peace and Possession," and forms one of the in- 
dependent colonies, although it must also be stated that both in 
Pethach Tikwah and in Eishon le-Zion there are quite a number of 
colonists who own their land. 

The community of Eechoboth has adopted a novel and effectual 
method of protecting itself against theft. An agreement was made 
with a neighboring sheik to furnish a watchman at ninety francs 
per month, with the stipulation that he shall make adequate in- 
demnification for anything that may disappear, and the plan has 
worked satisfactorily. This safeguard applies only to the danger 
of this kind to which the colony is exposed throughout the year. 
Against the periodic thieves who make their incursions with the 
ripening of the grapes, the only insurance . . . available is 
a number of armed colonists who patrol the vineyards all night 
during the season. This police system is established in all the 
other colonies. . . . 

The three remaining colonies of Judea, on account of their prox- 
imity, were readily reached in one day's journey. 

Ekron, after being a failure at first, came under the patronage of 
the Baron. The Baron, as an experiment, selected a number of 
Eussians who had experience as agriculturists, with the view of de- 



Addresses. 329 

voting the colony to the raising of grain. The experiment was 
eminently successful. Subsequently, to make the colony more 
profitable still, he changed it to a wine and fruit-growing one, and 
he has not been disappointed. This aggregation of orange, lemon, 
ethrog, palm, apricot, almond, pomegranate, and acacia trees under 
favoring climatic influences and the most advanced horticulture 
presents a beauteous picture, which cannot be excelled in its kind. 
Grhederah (Katra) had a unique beginning. It was settled by 
Kussian students. They had a very rough experience, but they 
maintained their courage. They were materially aided by the 
Choveve Zion Association of Eussia, and the colony has prospered. 
One-half of it is devoted to wine and fruit ; the other half to grain. 
It is interesting to note that these young men, brought up in the 
Kussian universities under the vitiating influence of Nihilism, have 
fully recovered therefrom, and have returned to a true Jewish life. 
The houses in this colony are built of limestone, are well con- 
structed, and present an appearance which lends a special charm 
to the place. Several of these houses are architecturally quite pre- 
tentious. In one of these, owned and occupied by a Eussian of 
means, we were kindly received. He came here because he wanted 
to live in Palestine. We were rather surprised to see, in the room 
in which we were entertained, some exquisite pieces of furniture 
brought all the way from Eussia. The floor was made of white 
and black blocks of marble, arranged with a decidedly pleasing 
effect. The samovar, the large brass tea machine, a very orna- 
mental piece which one often sees in Eussian houses in the East, 
was soon set going. Our kind host, already advanced in years, 
chirped and skipped about, the very picture of happiness in his 
cordial attentions to us. In thinking now of him and of his breth- 
ren who are left in the land of the Czar, I am strongly reminded 
of our Eussian Jewish poet Eosenfeld's pathetic song of the happy 



330 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

canary bird singing its sweet chants in the green woods, and of the 
one in the cage whose song is a sigh. 

We finished the day with the drive to Kastinje, the home of our 
friend Kaiserman. Our host, with the aid of a female Arab ser- 
vant bearing the euphonious name of Sapcha, attended most gener- 
ously to our wants. This colony is devoted exclusively to the rais- 
ing of grain, and was established by the Choveve Zion. Mr. 
Kaiserman showed us the plan of storing grain which had been 
learned from the Arabs, and which is also in vogue in some of 
the other colonies. It consists of excavations in the ground of the 
shape of an elliptical vase, with a long neck, and of a capacity of 
holding as many as a hundred and fifty bags of grain. These ex- 
cavations . . . are very skilfully made by the Arabs. They 
have the advantage of great economy, while the grain remains per- 
fectly protected. In the threshing of the grain the method of the 
natives has been found advantageous. It consists of spreading it 
out upon the field and driving horses, drawing a sort of heavy 
sled, over it in continuous circles. 

Our Arab servant's carriage was a typical example of the grace- 
ful bearing of the young Arab women, acquired, probably, from the 
erect posture enforced in the carrying of water jars and other bur- 
dens upon their heads. She promptly disappeared toward night- 
fall, as no Arab girl is known to be absent from her native village 
at night. She was about twenty-four years old, a rather advanced 
age for a girl in the East not to be married. We learned that she 
was promised to be given as wife to a little boy while she was quite 
a young child. The boy disappeared, and unless a divorce is ob- 
tained, or his death can be established, she can, according to the 
custom of the country, never marry anyone else. 

In driving from colony to colony we passed a number of Arab 
villages which added much to the interest of our journeys. The 
physician at Ghederah had been called the day before we arrived to 



Addresses. 331 

attend a neighboring sheik who was very ill. It became known 
that a physician from abroad was travelling through the country, 
and I was requested to meet the medical attendant in consultation. 
I gladly availed myself of the opportunity of seeing the inside of 
an Arab village. Such a village consists of a large circular wall 
built of mud, which at the same time forms the outer part of the 
houses, which are covered with a thick layer of straw. The village 
is entered through a wide arched gateway. On entering the court, 
a motley assembly of men, women, children, camels, horses, cows, 
donkeys, goats, and other cattle was observed. 

All around there were at intervals single openings which served 
as door and window to the respective dwellings. The house we 
entered consisted of a room twelve by twelve with a pile of stones 
in the center about three feet high, four feet broad, and about six 
feet long, covered with blankets, which formed a bed upon which 
the sick sheik lay. There was absolutely no other furniture in the 
room. The open court serves the purpose of the general parlor, 
sitting-room, dining-room, kitchen, and stable. Libraries are not 
required, and only of recent years has a feeble attempt been made 
to have village schools. The sheik had been sick for nearly six 
weeks. He shared the common belief that Providence alone should 
be relied upon in sickness. When he, however, got so ill that he 
could not resist the demands of his four sympathizing wives any 
longer, a physician was finally sent for. On leaving the village, I 
asked the doctor who came with us from Ghederah how it was pos- 
sible that a man like the sheik, who was reputed to be a man of 
considerable means, could live in such a wretched environment. 
He replied, " Such folk are quite happy as they are. They follow 
out a political economy of their own which resolves itself into the 
proposition that the less one has, the less can one be deprived of by 
the officials." They are not oppressed by the giving of a dowry to 
procure husbands for their daughters, a custom so wide-spread 



332 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

among other peoples; on the contrary, the father is paid a sum 
averaging about two hundred and fifty dollars for each daughter he 
gives away in marriage. Sometimes a father desires to increase 
his household by an additional wife and wants at the same time to 
escape the pressure of a cash transaction; he then gives away a 
daughter and takes a wife in exchange. A more commendable 
phase of Arab life was observed in the many poor women whom 
we met returning from the fields and carrying upon their heads 
loads of grain, these being the gleanings to which they are entitled 
by a statute based upon the Jewish law. At Kastinje we parted 
with our good friend Kaiserman, and proceeded in charge of our 
Arab driver to Sejet, a point about half way on the railroad between 
Jaffa and Jerusalem. . . . 

After spending eleven days in the Holy City, during which time 
we visited Hebron, Jericho, the Dead Sea, and the River Jordan, 
we returned to Jaffa. Following the direction of our friends of 
the Jaffa Committee we drove to Chuderah under the guidance 
of one of the colonists of that place. He had been spending Shabu- 
oth in Jaffa on a visit to his betrothed. He carried a rifle and 
wore a belt well stocked with cartridges. He had been in many a 
combat when the natives were not as peaceful as now. A conspicu- 
ous sinking of the bridge of his nose marked him as one of the 
heroes of these battles, and probably on this account he deemed it 
prudent to be fully armed while on the road. He was quite an in- 
telligent man and entertained us with an account of the early 
struggles of the colonists and the success they had achieved, which 
went far to lessen the discomfort of our journey, lasting eight hours 
over very dusty roads, and through a country which offered very 
little in the way of scenery. . . . 

We reached Chuderah late in the afternoon and were most hos- 
pitably received by Dr. Soskin, director of the colony. This colony 
was founded by a number of societies in Russia and occupies a ter- 



Addresses. 333 

ritory of nearly 7000 acres, which is about twice as large as the 
largest of the other colonies. Its western boundary is formed by 
the Mediterranean Sea, where it has a little harbor. Unfortu- 
nately malaria has raged here in its severest forms, owing to two 
swamps which generate this disease. Attempts at draining the 
land had to be abandoned on account of the large number of deaths 
occurring among those engaged in the work. The sufferings of this 
colony have been greatly mitigated through the benevolence of 
Baron de Eothschild, who, during the last few years, has annually 
expended 10,000 francs to enable the colonists and their families to 
spend two months of the season of danger in other colonies. A 
number of those thoroughly acclimated remain at home on guard. 
Besides this, the Baron has had two hundred thousand eucalyptus 
trees planted on the swampy land, and it is expected that the sani- 
tary condition of the colony will soon be very much improved, and 
that ultimately malaria will entirely disappear. The land is 
richly productive. The vines yield a rich harvest; watermelons 
grow well and abundantly, and find a ready market in Egypt, being 
shipped direct from the colony. Sesame, which is also largely 
raised, is a small plant with many seeds from which oil is extracted, 
and . . . commands a fair return. 

We left Chuderah in the morning and arrived at Zichron Jacob 
in about three hours. We now passed through a mountainous 
country. The hillsides were terraced in many places, but barren 
until we reached the Jewish settlement. When we were assured 
that the rich vine-clad slopes we beheld, as beautiful as those on 
the Ehine, occupied places that had been as barren as those we 
passed, we felt that a new miracle had been wrought. Moses 
struck the rock, and the water gushed forth ; here the colonists had 
appealed to the rocks, and they have yielded wine abundantly. 
Zichron Jacob is a beautiful town of about 2000 inhabitants, with 
fine houses, the administration building being almost palatial in 



334 Aakon Fbiedenwald, M. D. 

character. A park with a splashing fountain is placed in the cen- 
ter of the town, surrounded by broad, clean streets, with shaded 
sidewalks. The synagogue is quite an imposing structure. Zich- 
ron Jacob, on account of its highly developed condition and gay ap- 
pearance, is often called by the colonists the "new Paris." The 
bright little cottages, the luxuriant gardens, with the orchards of 
orange, lemon, pomegranate, and palm trees attached to them, the 
green slopes smiling upon the peaceful homes, and breathing a rich 
promise in the language of the vines, seemed to give an answer to 
the Psalmist's query : n?r *o* pun w-\nn bit wv KK>x " I will lift 
up mine eyes unto the hills ; from whence shall my help come ? " 

Zichron Jacob was first settled by Eoumanian Jews, as Samarin. 
They had to bear untold hardships. At one time, so we were told 
by an old settler, their last resource to procure bread was to pledge 
their Sefer Torah, "Scroll of the Law," for a loan. They re- 
deemed their pledge, and it is now especially endeared to them. 
Baron Edmond de Eothschild has given this colony his munificent 
protection, and to this cause is mainly due its great prosperity. Its 
present name, Zichron Jacob, the " Memorial of Jacob," is a trib- 
ute to the father of the Baron. This colony bears the same rela- 
tion to the Galilean colonies as does Bishon le-Zion to those of 
Judea. All the grapes are brought here to the extensive plant 
provided for the wine industry. 

Shefeya and Umm al-Jimal are two small colonies, outgrowths 
from Zichron Jacob, constituted entirely of workmen who had pre- 
viously been employed in the latter colony. They are planted be- 
tween the hills, and give signs of growing prosperity. The houses 
are cheerful and neat; the colonists seem proud of their advance- 
ment. We arrived during the season of the silk culture. Before 
every house there was a vast collection of branches of the mulberry 
tree. Women and children were engaged in stripping the leaves 
from the branches, and thus providing food for the worms. In 



Addresses. 335 

the main room of every house, — and this was largely true of Zich- 
ron Jacob also, — the usual furniture had been removed, and shelves 
were provided for feeding the worms. It was a pleasant scene to 
behold mothers and children with happy faces and nimble hands 
engaged in this important domestic industry. . . . 

Could we have prolonged our stay in Palestine, wo should have 
crossed the country from west to east to visit the colonies of which 
Eosh Pinnah forms the center, viz. : Mishmar ha-Yarden, Yesud 
ha-Maalah, and Metullah, but the season was too far advanced. 
. . . We regretted this the more, as it is in this direction that 
Palestine exhibits its greatest picturesqueness. The life of these 
colonists and the products of the land are very similar to those we 
have already described, as we were . . . informed. It is, 
however, worthy of mention that the silk industry is of special 
importance in Eosh Pinnah, where a factory for the spinning of 
silk is in successful operation. Yesud ha-Maalah is noted for the 
raising of roses, jessamine, acacias, tube-roses, and rose geraniums 
on a large scale, from which the fragrant oils are extracted in a 
quite extensive factory which has been erected for that purpose. 

The preceding is a condensed account of the life of the colonists 
and the possibilities of the land upon which they have settled. 
It has been definitely ascertained that Palestine is fertile and 
capable, with proper cultivation, of yielding ample sustenance for 
several millions of additional inhabitants without taking into ac- 
count the many more who could find support from the develop- 
ment of commerce and industries for which it offers a promising 
field. The desolation and poverty that prevails now is ascribable 
to some extent to the lethargy of its inhabitants, who have neg- 
lected agriculture; but more largely to the policy of the Turkish 
Government, which has exerted a withering influence upon the 
development of the country in every respect. But even under 
these unfavorable conditions the colonies have prospered, and the 



336 Aaron Feiedenwald, M. D. 

fact has been satisfactorily demonstrated that the Jew can become 
a successful tiller of the soil. Under his hand, Palestine has be- 
gun her regeneration. Barren hills have been clothed with gener- 
ous verdure. Deserted valleys have been reclaimed. Where ruth- 
less waste has for centuries ruled supreme, happy Jewish villages 
have grown. The forests that had disappeared are returning 
from their long exile and spreading their protecting shade and 
breathing their health-giving influence. Vine and fruit tree are 
vying with each other in offering their reward to the noble band of 
pioneers who have come from afar in their renewed love for the Old 
Home, and bid welcome to generations yet unborn. The busy bee 
has been charmed back again by flowers that have donned their 
brightest colors and spread their sweetest fragrance, and honey has 
again begun to flow. Plants have been ennobled by grafts of the 
best of every land. But the greatest change here the Jew himself 
presents. His bent form has become erect; his enfeebled body has 
regained strength; his cringing spirit has left him, and courage 
marks his movements instead. The tongue that so oft was bid to 
be silent has regained its freedom, and is readapting itself to its 
ancient sacred language. The Jew lives for high ideals, and feels 
that the time has come to make a new effort to rise out of the 
humiliation into which he has been dragged by centuries of re- 
lentless persecution. In vain has he proffered his love and given 
his blood in defence of the various countries of his adoption. He 
has been denounced as an alien and a parasite almost everywhere, 
and at the end of the nineteenth century, which promised so much, 
7,500,000 out of the 10,000,000 Jews in the world are placed under 
conditions which make life almost intolerable. His frailties have 
been magnified, his worth ignored, and his oppressors have sunk 
deeper and deeper into unconsciousness of the crime that they have 
perpetrated, and are continuing to perpetrate against him. He has 
striven honestly to live down prejudice, but the more he has tried 



Addresses. 337 

to adapt himself to circumstances, the more inexorable has become 
the condition that he must cease to be himself. In his Old Home, 
in Palestine, he hopes to become completely himself again. Here 
there shall be established a center for Jewish thought, and a life 
shaped by lofty Jewish ideals. Prom here there shall radiate an 
influence that shall reach Jews in every corner of the globe, and 
place them in a proper light, and eventually enforce amends for 
the wrongs from which they have so long suffered, so that finally 
the day may dawn when "out of Zion shall go forth the law, and 
the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." 



"GLIMPSES IN PALESTINE." 

Palestine has always attracted the interest of the Jewish, Chris- 
tian, and Mohammedan world. The Jews regarded it as their in- 
heritance, and have never relinquished their title to it. . . . 

The Mohammedans have held possession of Palestine for many 
centuries, and have great reverence for the historic places. They 
look with pride on their achievements during the Crusades, and 
Saladin will never lose in comparison with Godfrey de Bouillon 
and Eichard the Lion-hearted. 

The Christians have two great incentives for intrenching them- 
selves as strongly as they can; they hold that the possession of the 
burial place of the founder of their religion must be forever secure 
to them and that they must be sufficiently strong to assert them- 
selves when the final dealing out takes place, and each . . . 
Christian sect hates the others too much to permit any one sect to 
obtain an advantage in this regard. 

The principal city and the point of greatest interest in Palestine 
is Jerusalem; it is now readily reached by railroad from Jaffa; it 
is picturesquely placed upon Mt. Zion and Mt. Moriah at an ele- 
vation of 2700 feet above sea-level, enclosed by a beautiful wall 
with a number of gates. The population numbers between fifty 
and sixty thousand inhabitants, two-thirds being Jews; of the re- 
maining one-third about two-thirds are Mohammedans and the rest 
Christians, representing all their varied sects. Jews and Moham- 
medans live amicably together. The Mohammedans have not much 
love for Christians. The Christians, besides hating everybody else, 
are kept quite busy hating each other. Certain religious festivals 
held by Christians in the church of the Holy Sepulcher would be 



Addresses. 339 

rendered scenes of murder and bloodshed were it not for the Prince 
of Peace, who is represented in this instance by the Turkish Guard. 
Most of the people one meets upon the streets have nothing to do, 
and do not seem at all oppressed by their inactivity. 

The place where the Temple stood occupies about one-fifth of the 
area of the city. It is enclosed by a wall, and remains an empty 
place except in its center, which is occupied by the Mosque of Omar. 
I looked down upon this great enclosure and the Mosque from the 
high tower on the Mount of Olives. I shall not attempt to de- 
scribe it. How can it be described by one who could view it only 
through tears? . . . But only glimpses I am to offer. Jewish 
children speak more languages in Jerusalem, perhaps, than in any 
other part of the world. In the Kindergarten of the Alliance I 
listened to very small children singing English songs. All speak 
Hebrew, and besides this many speak Arabic, German, French, 
and English. 

You wondered, no doubt, when I stated that English was taught 
in the modern schools, whence the teachers were procured to do 
this teaching. Jerusalem is a great gathering place for that genus 
hominis which in America is known by the generic term " cranks." 
They find their way from all parts of the world, and America has 
not been left without its representation. About sixteen years ago 
quite a number of our countrymen and countrywomen, probably 
twenty persons in all, felt convinced that the prophecies were near- 
ing their fulfilment, and they wanted to be on the spot, to be on 
the ground floor, among those who were counting on their benefits ; 
they went to Jerusalem and waited from day to day, till the days 
became years, and their means were expended, and want stared 
them in the face. The fulfilment for which they had waited and for 
which they are still waiting had taken too slow a train, they found, 
and they eventually came to the conclusion that they had to do 
something besides praying and getting up early every morning and 



340 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

ascending the Mount of Olives to meet the messenger who was to 
bring the tidings, for the wolf was at the door ; so they have taken 
up a number of pursuits, among them nursing the sick, taking and 
selling photographs of scenes in Palestine, producing various ar- 
ticles for household use, and especially teaching. For this a num- 
ber of them were specially qualified, and they have proven them- 
selves excellent teachers in the Jewish schools; and have otherwise 
contributed materially to the spread of the English language in 
Jerusalem. They have resigned themselves to a life of celibacy. 
When a married couple enters the family their relations change to 
that of brother and sister; children are the common property of 
the family. In consequence of their faith they live in perfect 
peace, so they say, though a great many doubt it; and they hold 
that by the general adoption of their system of belief the whole 
world would be at peace. We have here another example of the 
mistake so often made, that because a certain plan works satis- 
factorily on a small scale, it must necessarily work equally well 
upon the largest scale. I met a number of them and spent an 
evening in their society, and found them very intelligent indeed 
and equally refined. There seems to be some kind of a mystery 
connected with them, which no one has yet been able fully to 
unravel. . . . 

In speaking of the American family we met an example of people 
in Jerusalem who do not marry at all ; in the Mohammedans we find 
a class who sometimes marry quite frequently; and in the Jews we 
have examples of people often marrying at an age at which we 
should still consider them children. The case of a boy of fourteen 
marrying a girl of twelve ... is nothing very uncommon, nor 
is it very rare for a man to be a grandfather before he is forty 
years old. 

There are a great many Kabbis in Jerusalem; I cannot say ex- 
actly how many thousand. I have heard some bad things said 



Addresses. 341 

about them, which in no instance did I believe; for I have been 
greatly prejudiced in their favor, because, among other reasons, 
they never, or very seldom preach, and have no means of defending 
themselves against these charges. . . . 

The sights one is shown in traveling through Palestine are 
principally the burial places of the patriarchs, kings, and prophets. 
In other words, we are brought to the great cemetery of our former 
national glory. It would be a dreary journey for him who did not 
believe in the resurrection of the dead, but for him who believes in 
this resurrection, and for him who has the insight to recognize the 
first signs of the quickening, there is a joy to be found here which 
no other place in the world affords. Here and there, in Judea, in 
Samaria, in Galilee, and also faintly, yet recognizably, in the 
Hauran, there is a new life sprouting up, a life that Palestine has 
not known since the Jews were taken away as captives. Twenty- 
four Jewish colonies now decorate a landscape which but recently 
was one continuous . . . waste. Happy homes have here 
been established from which Jewish songs resound in tones pro- 
phetic of the new era that is to come. The land has begun to 
divest itself of its badge of mourning; where nothing but weeds 
grew and famine barred out all animal life, forests have reappeared 
and vineyards have covered the nakedness of the mountains and 
orchards are offering their luscious fruit and fields are bearing rich 
yields of grain. Where ignorance reigned ... for centuries, 
Jewish schools now shed their blessings, and the returned exile has 
regained his own, his ancient sacred language. After an absence 
of eighteen centuries and passing through endless vicissitudes, 
forced to do what he had not been accustomed to in his old home, 
and to do this so long, that he forgot what was his normal state, 
he has come back and resumed his old work, and shown the world 
that Palestine is fertile, and that the Jew can become a successful 
tiller of the soil. 

23 



" LOVEES OP ZION," AN ADDEESS DELIVEEED BEFOEE 
THE MICKVE ISEAEL ASSOCIATION OP PHILADEL- 
PHIA, DECEMBEE 23, 1894. 

Since affairs in Eussia assumed a state which compelled thousands 
upon thousands of its Jewish inhabitants to seek homes in other 
parts of the world, the love of Zion which has accompanied Israel 
throughout the dispersion has acquired a fresh intensity; this has 
inaugurated a movement full of richest promise. This movement 
has the lofty aspiration of making the Hebrew language again the 
language of the Hebrews, and of establishing a home for Israelites 
in the land which was the home of their ancestors. It shall be the 
purpose of the lecture which I have the honor to deliver, by your 
kind invitation, to present the motives which have led to the or- 
ganization of the Chibbath Zion, to outline its progress, and to con- 
sider the possibilities which it indicates. 

The world has greatly marveled at the unexpected preservation 
of the Jews. When Eome finally triumphed over the Holy City 
and Israel was carried into captivity, everything pointed to the 
total annihilation of the Jews as a people. Little did the historian 
of that day dream that the historian of nearly twenty centuries 
later would speak of them as the only living relic of antiquity; as 
a people who, under the most adverse conditions, had made the 
long journey from ancient to modern times ; as a people fully pre- 
serving their identity, and still adhering to that religion for which 
they had to suffer unceasingly from the time of the destruction of 
their nationality to the present day. But it is not the simple sur- 
vival of the Jews of which history has to take account. It must 
accord them recognition not only for having preserved themselves, 



Addresses. 343 

in spite of having been subjected to persecutions such as have been 
the lot of no other people, but also for much that they have pre- 
served for the world. They were largely the media through which 
the intellectual achievements of the East reached the West during 
the Middle Ages; and to them, furthermore, must be credited no 
mean share in the progress the world has made since that time. Dur- 
ing that long period in which the whole of Europe was steeped in 
ignorance and the continuous clash of arms was the expression of a 
vile brutality, the Jews, proscribed at every step by those in power, 
subjected to the contumely of vulgar mobs, insecure in the posses- 
sion of their tangible property, with no place that they could call 
a home, cultivated a spiritual life and an intellectual life; and in 
moments of peace within their four walls their crouching forms 
would assume the dignity of self-respect and they would look down 
upon the degradation of their persecutors with contempt, were they 
slaves or were they kings. Conscious of a sacred mission which 
they were destined to fulfil, feeling their responsibility as custo- 
dians of the Law, and animated by the hope of the restoration of 
their national life, they became the heroes of an unequaled mar- 
tyrdom consecrated to the glory of God. Through many centuries 
they were the witnesses of the instability of material grandeur 
among the many nations. While they were kept alive by the in- 
spiration of a holy faith, they saw one power succumb to another, 
each in turn becoming their persecutors. Over and over again 
they were robbed of all their earthly possessions, but they took good 
care not to be cheated of their faith. Pressed as they were on all 
sides, peace and honor were regarded as worthless currency when 
offered them in exchange for that gem inherited from their fore- 
fathers; although treated as aliens everywhere, they held this up 
as the sign that they should become a blessing to all mankind. 

When at last the light of modern times began to illumine the 
world, and under its benign influence man was gradually led from 



344 Aaron Feiedenwald, M. D. 

serfdom into citizenship, and despotism had to yield to representa- 
tive government, the Jew could not be excluded altogether from the 
benefits which were brought about by the salutary changes. In 
those countries which led in the advance the Jew was granted equal 
rights. It seemed as if an era in the world's history had been 
reached in which there could be no step backward in the application 
of the principle of equal rights for all men. The general proposi- 
tion that any law which denied the rights of any special class of 
men carried with it the condition that the rights of all men would 
be rendered insecure, was too clear to be disregarded. No class of 
men, therefore, in the great struggle for liberty, could demand 
rights for themselves which they would deny to others ; and so the 
Jew came in for his share, although the inference is justified that 
it was not always ungrudgingly awarded. 

It seemed further that the intimate intercourse among the na- 
tions which marked the age would bring them rapidly nearer to 
each other in their sympathies, and that the memorable political 
regeneration which had so greatly changed the complexion of 
Western Europe could not long be barred out of the Eastern 
empires. 

Under these favorable auspices the Jew entered upon a new 
activity. The long discipline through which he had passed aided 
him greatly in the various fields in which he was now permitted 
to move, and it was not long before he attracted attention by the 
distinction which he attained. It was not remarkable that he suc- 
ceeded so well in the various branches of commerce for, even with 
the disadvantages under which he had previously labored, his 
aptitude in this direction had fully manifested itself. He now 
assumed a conspicuous part in the work to be done in other fields. 
He had suffered under the unjust accusation that he had no ambi- 
tion except for gain, but he soon appeared as an earnest competitor 
in every avenue which led to honorable fame. In the arts and in 



Addresses. 345 

the sciences, in literature and in politics, he contributed names 
which will remain illustrious for all time. 

Having always been loyal to the state, even when he had to 
suffer from unkind discriminations, his pride in full citizenship 
knew no bounds; and he was not loath to rid himself of character- 
istics, some of which were not to his discredit, in order thoroughly 
to provide against the continuance of social distinctions between 
him and other citizens. He plunged into the current of the times, 
and his course indicated that he sought his welfare in directions in 
which he drifted farther and farther from his Jewish interests. 
He lived his new life as though he had just been born, and as 
though his history had died at his birth. He felt sure that he was 
now standing upon firm ground, and that no occasion could arise 
that would render his rights insecure. 

History has often repeated itself, however, in the testimony 
which it has recorded in regard to unexpected interruptions in the 
onward march of civilization ; and so in our day the long-cherished 
hope that the benign influence which had developed in Western 
Europe would travel eastward and reach the Jews where they were 
most in need of it was doomed to meet a sad disappointment. It 
was a most bitter irony of fate that the storm came from whence 
the refreshing zephyr was expected. In the country foremost 
among those high in culture and in the development of general in- 
telligence an intolerance asserted itself which, on account of its 
anomalous character, had to assume a new name, " Anti- 
Semitism"; this Anti-Semitism the lamented Frederick III. 
(then Crown Prince) denounced as " Ein Schmach des 
Jahrhunderts." Moreover the contagion spread to its close 
neighbor, that mighty empire whose institutions were formed 
in the mould of the dark ages, and there it incited a 
cruel persecution, which, in the intensity of its barbarism, 
could be equaled only by events which disgraced mediaeval 



346 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

times. Anti-Semitism spread from Germany to Austria, and 
even secured . . . some foothold in Republican France. To 
provide a basis upon which it could stand, the Jew was confronted 
by a remarkable arraignment. " He pushed himself forward and 
secured positions which others should occupy." " He sent too 
many of his youth to higher institutions of learning." " He filled 
too many chairs in the universities." " He became too potent a 
factor in the press." These were some of the charges preferred 
against him. The intelligence, energy, and ambition which enabled 
him to elevate himself, and which would have been commended in 
any one else, subjected him to a relentless hatred. He was de- 
nounced as a parasite upon the nation, although he was an inhabi- 
tant of Germany before Christianity was brought there, and was 
here, as almost everywhere else, systematically robbed, whenever it 
was worth while doing so, for many centuries. He was charged 
with being governed by a low standard of honor in his dealings 
with all men, and this by the party which sent Ahlwardt to the 
Reichstag, even after he had been disgraced in a court of law. 
Every possible distortion of statistics was made use of to place 
him in a false light before the world, to justify the cruel ostracism 
to which he was at once subjected, and to offer a plea upon which 
the abrogation of his rights under the law could eventually be con- 
summated. Humiliating as this condition of affairs was to the Ger- 
man Jew, against whom it was specially directed, it made a no 
less profound impression upon his unfortunate brother in Russia. 
In Russia the Jew was in the way on account of his religion, and 
inasmuch as he could not be made to desert his faith, he must be 
gotten rid of. In Germany no one objected to his religion, it was 
said, but his race, as a component part of the nation, would vitiate 
the ethical well-being of the " German enthum ;" and he had to be 
degraded, so that he might be made harmless. The persecution in 
Russia, terrible as it was, could be more readily understood than 



Addresses. 347 

the Anti-Semitism born in Germany. The former was the out- 
come of the crime of one man, in a country whose people could not 
claim rights ; the latter is the sin of a nation whose institutions are 
based on the theory that all men have rights, to assail which is a 
crime. Everywhere the relation of the Jew to the rest of the world 
has been and is being busily discussed, and there has arisen what 
has been called the "Jewish Question." Those who have been 
forced to contemplate expatriation with all the hardships neces- 
sarily attending it felt that they would be unwelcome guests wher- 
ever they came. It has become more and more evident that the 
Jew is more or less hated everywhere. The prejudice against him 
has lasted for so many generations, has been made legitimate by 
the example of so many high in the church and in the state, that it 
has finally established itself as a perverted social instinct, to eradi- 
cate which will require a very extended period of time and a higher 
moral development than the world has yet attained. One who has 
come into possession of wealth by inheritance would be rather loath 
to renounce it on the ground that it had originally been dishonestly 
acquired, especially on the allegation of one who was known not 
to have enjoyed the friendship of the testator; and so will one 
generation, inheriting a social prejudice from previous generations, 
be disinclined to give it up for the benefit of one who has been 
considered an outsider for an untold number of generations. 

The efforts of the Jews themselves and of their friendly advo- 
cates to place their cause in a true light before the world have not 
met with much success. The hideous caricature under which the 
Jew has so long been maliciously represented, has finally made such 
a lasting impression upon the mental vision of his enemies that, 
no matter in what guise he appears, he assumes the repugnant 
form under which he has become familiar. So far there is no indica- 
tion which can encourage us to hope that any speedy change will 
take place in this morbid condition. The restoration of healthy 



348 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

function to a perverted sense which has suffered for generations 
from a hereditary infirmity, is an extremely slow process. In in- 
dividual cases the Jew will succeed by life-long reputation for in- 
tegrity, by special talents, or rare genius, in winning due recogni- 
tion, but the friendship which it may bring him will not benefit any 
other Jew; on the other hand, when one Jew brings himself into 
discredit, the Jews as a class are embraced in the condemnation 
which follows. The antagonism which is directed against the Jew 
proceeds everywhere from the same cause, only its expression varies 
according to the state of civilization in the respective countries in 
which it exists. It is very unfortunate, therefore, that the geo- 
graphical distribution of the Jews is such that only a comparatively 
small number live in the more highly developed states of Western 
Europe, while probably more than one-half of the entire number 
are to be found congregated in a rather small area in Eastern 
Europe, where the harshest conditions prevail. 

It would be a sad mistake to continue to suffer and to wait for 
that period when the brotherhood of man will be fully established, 
and those enmities based upon differences in descent and belief 
will cease. But what shall we do? The Choveve Zion have given 
an answer to this question. It is based upon the conviction that 
the preservation of the dignity of the Jewish people all over the 
world depends upon the revival of the national idea. This will 
bind them closer to their Jewish interests; and this is gradually 
to secure for a portion of those imbued with the national sentiment, 
who are now suffering from the depressing influences prevailing 
within the overcrowded pale of settlement, a life such as their an- 
cestors led, amid the scenes of their ancient history. Here the 
Jew is to find peace in a simpler and more natural life. Here, in 
freer movements, in fresher air, he is to regain his phj'sical 
strength. Here, under the inspiration of a glorious past, Jewish 
thought is to develop in its richest spontaneity. Here, to the 



Addresses. 349 

land where milk and honey once flowed, the Jew shall come from 
his latest expatriation to redeem it from the waste, worn as the 
badge of mourning for the children carried off by the ancient exile. 
This sentiment led to the organization of the Choveve Zion Asso- 
ciation in Kussia in 1882, shortly after the outbreak of the perse- 
cution which has become so memorable; but, from the nature of 
things in that empire, it continued to exist in secret until 1890, 
when it received the sanction of the government. While it still 
receives its largest support in Eussia, similar associations have been 
established in Austria, Germany, England, France, and, I am glad 
to add, in this country. Twenty-four colonies have thus far been 
established, embracing a population of over four thousand souls. 
The progress of these colonies has made it clear that the project 
of repopulating Palestine by Jews in this way is perfectly feasible. 
It is true that these colonies are still far from having reached full 
prosperity, but the increasing reward which has attended the per- 
sistent labor of the earnest colonists warrants the assumption that 
it will not be long before they will be able to rely entirely upon 
themselves. The Choveve Zion will then be enabled to devote 
their means to the gradual organization of new colonies. . . - 1 

The idea has taken deep root that the Jews should acquire a 
home which should be their own, and which should be where their 
ancestors lived and received that inspiration which will remain im- 
perishable. 

Under the influence of this sentiment, a new and quite extensive 
Hebrew literature has been produced. Throughout the develop- 
ment of the Choveve Zion, the acquisition of a home in Palestine 
and the revival of the Hebrew language have been inseparably 
interwoven. . . . 2 

The creation of a literature . . . unmistakably signifies that 

1 A detailed description of the colonies follows. 

2 A sketch of the Renaissance of Hebrew literature follows. 



350 Aaeon Feiedenwald, M. D 



the national idea has taken new and deep root and is not likely to 
prove an ephemeral growth, but that it will become stronger and 
stronger. The return in a few years of thousands of Jews to 
agricultural pursuits, out of which they had been driven by the 
unfriendly fate of twenty centuries, under conditions demanding 
such brave resolution, evidences an earnestness of purpose which 
points to great possibilities. Palestine was peopled by Israel and 
yielded sustenance to millions. It was wrested from Israel and 
remained despoiled. Fertility is again to be restored to it by 
Jewish hands. In the deserted places Jewish villages shall arise. 
The vine-clad hills shall again recount the story of happy Jewish 
homes. The peaceful valleys shall give testimony of renewed 
Jewish life. The cities shall be redeemed from degeneracy through 
Western culture, which the exile shall bring with him. He who 
was a medium through which civilization reached the West during 
the dark ages will appropriately become the bearer of enlighten- 
ment through which the Orient is destined to be regenerated. In- 
stitutions are to be reared which shall become the laboratories of 
Jewish thought. The Jew is again to rise to his full dignity and 
show the world how much light Judaism has shed and is yet capable 
of shedding upon all mankind. This is the grand ideal which 
thousands upon thousands hope for and are willing to work and to 
suffer for. 

But the influence of this movement is not to be restricted to 
those who have, or who are willing to cast their lot in Palestine. 
It is to take a strong hold upon the Jew everywhere. To him who 
is still suffering from formidable persecution it is to be the great 
hope that shall sustain him through his trial. To him who has 
been elevated to full citizenship by the law, but made an alien by 
the social decree, as in Germany and elsewhere, it will afford that 
self-emancipation which is to shield him from the allurements of 
the hour and fit him for the purposes of a high destiny. Through- 



Addresses. 351 

out the great struggle, which is eventually to establish the brother- 
hood of man, in which we are all to lend our best efforts, the great 
fellowship which has hitherto embraced the Jews of every land is 
inviolably to be maintained. In dealing with the antipathy which 
assails him because he is a Jew, he is to think, to live, and to act 
in a renewed realization that there is nothing so sure to contribute 
to his happiness as that which is Jewish. He is to stop bartering 
away his old treasures for flimsy novelties. He is not to borrow 
from others, when he is in possession of an inheritance by which 
the whole world can be enriched. This is how the " Jewish Ques- 
tion " is to be answered for the Jew, not in a cringing spirit, but 
animated by the pride of being descended from a noble ancestry, 
to whom the whole world is indebted for having been the bearers 
of a message which was the first to publish the lessons of justice 
and humanity. 

In the revival of the national idea it is not proposed that all 
Jews be settled in Palestine. If those who have been honored by 
citizenship in the more favored lands will but enter into the spirit 
which underlies the movement, they can promote the cause by re- 
viving the study of the Hebrew language, by forming societies of 
Choveve Zion, as has been done in England and in Germany, and 
by living consistently the life of a Jew; and by promoting the 
cause in this way they will honor themselves, and fortify them- 
selves to assume an attitude against which the shafts of Anti- 
Semitism will prove unavailing. 

" The eminence, the nobleness of a people, depends on its capa- 
bility of being stirred by memories, and for striving for what we 
call spiritual ends — ends which consist not in immediate material 
possession, but in the satisfaction of a great feeling that animates 
the collective body as with one soul." These are the encouraging 
words which came from George Eliot. 

The Jew is confronted by the alternative, either to make a brave 



352 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 

resistance against the modern influences which conspire to bring 
about his disintegration, and to come out of the fight with a new 
victory to add to his glorious record ; or, misled by the false mean- 
ing of assimilation, to surrender to what he is made to believe is 
inevitable, and to suffer the ignominious doom of the forgotten. 
But Israel will not surrender ! A Maccabean spirit will arise anew 
to fire the Jewish heart to cast out the idols from the sanctuary. 
It was not Israel that sold his birthright for a mess of pottage. It 
was his to struggle and to win. 



APPENDIX. 

LIST OF PUBLISHED AND UNPUBLISHED WRITINGS.* 

"Letter from Berlin" (dealing with Glaucoma and Iridectomy), 
Maryland and Virginia Medical Journal, 1861, Vol. XVI, p. 349. 

" The Pulse," a paper read before one of the Baltimore medical so- 
cieties, 186 — . 

" Diseases of the Lachrymal Apparatus," a paper read before the 
Baltimore Medical Association, 1869. 

" Sympathetic Ophthalmia," a paper read before the Baltimore Medical 
Association, 1869. 

" Exophthalmic Goitre," a paper read before the Pathological Society 
of Baltimore, 1870 (?). 

" Purulent Ophthalmia," a paper read before the Baltimore Medical 
Association, April, 1870. 

" Traumatic Cataract," a paper read before the Baltimore Medical As- 
sociation, April 24, 1871. 

" Various Conditions of the Nerves of the Eye Regulating the Con- 
traction and Dilatation of the Pupil," a paper read before the 
Medical and Surgical Society of Baltimore, May 4, 1871. 

" Iritis," a paper read before the Baltimore Medical Association, Sep- 
tember, 1871. 

" Retinitis Complicated with Bright's Disease," Trans. Med. & Chir. 
Faculty, October, 1871. 

" Eczema," a paper read before the Medical and Surgical Society of 
Baltimore, February 8, 1872. 

" Glaucoma," a paper read before the Baltimore Medical Association, 
November 11, 1872. 

" Phlyctenular Ophthalmia," a paper read before the Medical and 
Surgical Society of Baltimore, May 1, 1873. 

Introductory Lecture to the Course on Diseases of the Eye and Ear, 
delivered before the Class of the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, Baltimore, October, 1873. 

" Report on Surgery : Indications for the Enucleation of the Eye-ball 
and the Correction of the Deformity by the Insertion of an Arti- 
ficial Eye," read before the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of 
Maryland, April, 1876; Trans. Med. & Chir. Faculty, 1876, p. 82; 
also Cincinnati Medical News, November, 1877. 

* The unpublished writings are preserved in manuscript. 



354 Aaron Friedenwald, M. D. 



" Ophthalmological Notes" (including "Anaesthetics in Ophthalmic 
Surgery" and "Spasm of the Accommodation"), a paper read 
before the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland, April, 
1878; Trans. Med. & Chir. Faculty, 1878, p. 94. 

" The Eye," a Lecture delivered before the Hebrew Young Men's As- 
sociation of Baltimore, 1878. 

" Optic Neuritis," a paper read before the Baltimore Medical Associa- 
tion, April 11, 1881; Maryland Medical Journal, August 1 and 15, 
1881; also reprinted separately. 

" Introductory Address, delivered before the Class of the College of 
Physicians and Surgeons of Baltimore City, September 14, 1881, 
. . . Published by the Class." 

" Address on the Occasion of the Dedication of the Newly Acquired 
Ground at the Simchath Thorah Festival of the Hebrew Hospital 
and Asylum Association of Baltimore City, October 16, 1881," pub- 
lished by the Association, Baltimore, 1881. 

" Old Foes and New Friends," an Address upon Anti-Semitism, deliv- 
ered before the Hebrew Young Men's Association of Baltimore 
(1882?). 

" Enucleation and Optico-Ciliary Neurotomy," a Clinical Lecture before 
the Class of the College of Physicians and Surgeons; Medical 
Chronicle (Baltimore), Vol. I, 1883, p. 150. 

" Four Cases of Syphilitic Brain Disease Complicated with Eye Dis- 
ease" (1883?). 

" Relation of Eye and Spinal Diseases," a paper read before the Medical 
and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland; Trans. Med. & Chir. Faculty, 
1883, p. 187; also reprinted separately. (Abstracted in Medical 
News (Philadelphia), Vol. XLII, 1883, p. 505, and in the Maryland 
Medical Journal, Vol. X, 1883-4, p. 25.) 

" Uraemic Amaurosis," a paper read before the Baltimore Medical As- 
sociation, June 9, 1883; Medical News (Philadelphia), April 9, 
1884; abstracted in the Medical Chronicle (Baltimore), November, 
1884. 

" Recent Progress in Ophthalmology," a review of current literature, 
Medical Chronicle (Baltimore), August, 1883. 

Address Commemorative of Dr. Andrew Hartman (f December 15, 1884). 

Address delivered at the Purim Banquet of the Hebrew Ladies' Orphans' 
Aid Society, Baltimore, February 27, 1885. 

" Foreign Bodies in the Eye," a paper read before the Clinical Society 
of Baltimore, March 20, 1885. 

" Four Cases of Eye-Injuries," described at the meeting of the Balti- 
more Medical Association, November 10, 1885; Medical Times 
(Philadelphia), December 12, 1885. 

" Osteosarcoma at Base of Skull," Maryland Medical Journal, 1886, 
p. 500. 



Appendix. 355 



"A Case of Optic Neuritis with Brain Symptoms: Recovery, with Re- 
marks," a paper read before the Clinical Society of Baltimore, 
December, 1885; New York Medical Journal, February 5, 1887. 

Address Commemorative of Professor John S. Lynch, M. D., delivered 
before the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland, October 
7, 1888; published in abstract in Trans. Med. & Chir. Faculty, 1889, 
p. 42. 

" Disturbed Equilibrium of the Muscles of the Eye as a Factor in the 
Causation of Nervous Diseases," a paper read before the Medical 
and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland; Trans. Med. & Chir. Faculty, 
1889, p. 199; also reprinted separately. 

" Iodoform in Gonorrhoeal Ophthalmia," a paper read before one of the 
Baltimore medical societies, 1889. 

Address delivered at the Opening of the New City Hospital, Baltimore, 
January 1, 1889. 

" Detachment of the Retina," a paper read before the Baltimore Med- 
ical Association, November 11, 1889; Maryland Medical Journal, 
Vol. XXII, 1889, p. 205. 

Address at the Semi-Annual Session of the Medical and Chirurgical 
Faculty of Maryland, Hagerstown, November 12, 1889; published 
in part in Trans. Med. & Chir. Faculty, 1890, p. 10. 

Address delivered at the Simchath Torah Festival of the Hebrew Hos- 
pital and Asylum Association, 1890. 

" The Modern Hospital," Presidential Address before the Medical and 
Chirurgical Faculty of Baltimore, 1890; Trans. Med. & Chir. Fac- 
ulty, 1890, p. 145; also Maryland Medical Journal, Vol. XXIII, 1890, 

p!i. 

" Jewish Immigration," an Address, published in the American Hebrew 
(New York), (1891?). 

Address at the Celebration in Honor of the Seventieth Birthday of 
Professor Virchow, held in the Johns Hopkins University, Balti- 
more, October 13, 1891; published in the Johns Hopkins University 
Circular. 

" Charity," an Address delivered at the Annual Banquet of the Hebrew 
Benevolent Society, Baltimore, December 1, 1892. 

Address delivered at the Annual Meeting of the Baltimore Branch of 
the Alliance Israelite Universelle, March 19, 1893. 

" Paralysis of the Eye Muscles of Central and Peripheral Origin," a 
paper read before the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Mary- 
land, April, 1894; Maryland Medical Journal, May 26, 1894; also 
reprinted separately. 

" Lovers of Zion," an address delivered before the Mickve Israel Asso- 
ciation of Philadelphia, December 23, 1894; published in the Jew- 
ish Exponent (Philadelphia) and reprinted by the Zion Association 
of Baltimore. 



356 Aaeon Friedenwald, M. D. 



" Jewish Physicians and the Contributions of Jews to the Science of 
Medicine: a Lecture delivered before the Gratz College of Phila- 
delphia, January 20, 1896"; Publications of Gratz College, No. 1; 
also reprinted separately, Philadelphia, 1897. 

" A Trip to Palestine," an Address read before the Young Men s Hebrew 
Association of Philadelphia, February 25, 1899, and also before 
societies in Baltimore and New York; published in the Jeivish 
Exponent (Philadelphia). 

" Glimpses in Palestine," an Address delivered before a Jewish society 
in Baltimore (1899?). 

" History of Medicine before Hippocrates," a paper published in the 
Journal of the Alumni Association of the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, April, 1900. 

"Circumcision" (Medical Aspects), an Article in the Jewish Ency- 
clopedia, Vol. IV. 

" Doctor George H. Rohe : A Memoir," read at the Memorial Meeting 
of the Maryland Health Association, May 23, 1901; published in 
pamphlet form. 

" Removal of the Crystalline Lens for High Degrees of Myopia," 
Journal of the Alumni Association of the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons, Baltimore, July, 1901. 

Address at the Celebration held in Honor of the Completion of the 
Twenty-fifth Year of the Reverend Dr. Henry W. Schneeberger's 
Service as Rabbi of the Chizuk Emoonah Congregation, Baltimore, 
October 20, 1901. 

" The National Jewish Hospital for Consumptives," an Article pub- 
lished posthumously in the Jewish Comment (Baltimore), Novem- 
ber 14, 1902. 



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